


Bruises and Broken Bones

by MissyXoxo



Series: The End of Summer [1]
Category: Outer Banks (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Attempted Rape/Non-Con, Drug Use, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Minor Character Death, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:41:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 23,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24091504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissyXoxo/pseuds/MissyXoxo
Summary: JJ had been picking Kie up from work, unsure how safe it was for any of them to be caught out after dark alone with so many enemies still at large.Rafe and Barry knew this and were waiting for the right moment to make some demands.Set after the events of the finale. Formerly the oneshot titled The Wreck. Part One of my upcoming End of Summer series.
Relationships: JJ & Kiara (Outer Banks), JJ/Kiara (Outer Banks), Sarah Cameron/John B. Routledge
Series: The End of Summer [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1750555
Comments: 111
Kudos: 416





	1. The Wreck

**Author's Note:**

> My first Outer Banks fic and my first for AO3. 
> 
> This came about after a couple scenes popped into my head and I had to get them out. At the moment this is a one shot but I could be persuaded to continue because I have an idea where it could go but haven't written anything else yet.  
> Edit: Obviously not a oneshot anymore, thanks for all the comments!!
> 
> No beta so all the errors are mine, sorry. Please leave kudos and comments.  
> Thanks and here goes.

Rafe and Barry had been sitting in his car for almost forty minutes, waiting for the last customers to leave The Wreck. They knew Kiara was locking up tonight and that JJ had been picking her up and driving her home when she closed her family’s restaurant.

It had been nearly 2 weeks since John B and Sarah had supposedly drowned in that storm. Barry the drug dealer had never really been a patient man, but the cops had been all over the Pogue crew for a week after their friend had died. He did not know if the cops were getting smarter, but they were starting to think the Sheriffs murder and the manhunt that followed was more complicated than it seemed. 

A couple in their late fifties exited the restaurant and got into the only car in the in the parking lot. Rafe had just completed his third line of cocaine in the last hour and had plenty and tension to burn off. “Okay, let’s go.” He said opening the car door to leave.

“Hold up. That piece of shit JJ isn’t here yet.” Barry replied putting his hand on Rafe’s chest. “We wait til he gets here and corner them together. That Pope kid who got you good hasn’t been out past curfew and is barely away from his parents, so 2 out of 3 is gonna have to do.”

Rafe clenched his jaw at the sound of Popes name, the bruises he had given him had only recently healed. He looked down at the hand on his chest, if anyone else had put hands on him like this they would have pulled it back with broken fingers, but he couldn’t with Barry. Barry owned him, Kiara said that Rafe had killed the Sheriff in front of him and now he couldn’t risk him using that information to destroy him. 

“What if he just pulls up in that piece of shit Pogue van and she gets straight in?” Rafe wanted an excuse to talk to Kie before JJ got there. “I will go in there and keep Kie inside and then when JJ shows you can follow him, and they’ll be trapped.”

Barry raised a skeptical eyebrow. Honestly, he didn’t care about the girl but Rafe was a loose cannon at the best of times, he didn’t want him to fuck it up. He removed his hand from Rafe and gestured to the car door, giving his current partner in crime the greenlight to do what he wanted. “He will be here soon anyway, so go for it. I don’t care.” He reasoned and turned back to watching the building and surrounding streets.

…

Kie had been working as often as possible at her parent’s restaurant. Pope and JJ would sometimes hang around while she worked but Pope had felt so guilty about how he had treated his Dad that he had been working a lot too. Pope had an extremely strict curfew and never pushed it, wanting to spend time with his parents after everything that happened with John B and Sarah. JJ had been lucky to find work, odd jobs of cleaning and clearing mostly. JJ had stayed a couple days with Pope and his family after the storm but never one to overstay his welcome, he had left and returned to the only place he had ever really called home, The Chateau. He had crashed there so often that sometime in the last few months even John B had referred to his Dad’s bedroom as JJ’s. He had also been driving the Pogue-Mobile, John B’s beat up old van. He insisted on picking up Kiara on the nights she had to close The Wreck because even though the cops didn’t think they were completely insane they still hadn’t arrested Ward Cameron or his son. 

Kiara, being the only girl in their group for so long hated the idea of feeling like a damsel but she did feel safer when JJ drove her home. The nights had been getting colder and the dinner rush was over earlier than it usually was. The last customers had left just after 9pm but the opening hours were until 9:30 so she did not know how long she would have to wait until her friend arrived.

She moved into the kitchen after clearing the last table and set out some of the leftover food into takeaway containers. She had been routinely giving the assortment to JJ to cover all his meals before she had another closing shift and was able to once again restock the freezer at the Chateau. 

Kie heard the main door open and assumed JJ had showed up early for his dinner. “Hey, I’m in the kitchen. We have a couple of options for your dining pleasure tonight.” She joked. She was organizing a stack of take-home containers when the door from the dining area swung open. “JJ, what are you in the mood for¬-”

She turned and froze. Rafe was standing there, half leaning on the nearest counter, not even looking directly at her. She used this opportunity to survey her surroundings for a weapon but only found the big spoon she had been using to scrap the food away from the inside of a large pot. Her eyes landed on the large filleting knife on the bench closest to where Rafe now stood. He too had been looking for a weapon and he reached out easily to pick up the knife. They locked eyes once he brought the knife up to hold firmly in his hand.

“Rafe-”

He cut her off, shushing her and bringing the blade up to hold in front of his mouth like you would a finger. “Kiara.” He said her name as if she was an old friend he had been surprised to run into on the street. The relaxed familiarity with which he spoke scared Kiara more than if he had been shaking with rage. Anger she could have worked with, but this calm was unpredictable. He took a couple slow casual steps towards her. She grabbed at the large metal spoon, clutching it in front of her, knowing any weapon was better than none.

“Hey now. I just want to talk. I just thought we could hang out before your Pogue boyfriend gets here.” Even though Kiara’s most recent kiss had been with Pope she knew he wasn’t who Rafe was talking about. An eerie smile spread across his lips. “Put the spoon down. Let’s chat. We were friends once, you know. You were always at the house chasing after Sarah for those months before you returned to slumming it.”

“We were never friends. You were just there when I wanted to hang out with Sarah.” The calm veneer slipped from his face and Kie knew she had said the wrong thing. But Kie held her stance, not letting the fear inside show on her face.

He stood there for almost a minute, like a jungle cat preparing to pounce. The tension had become too much, and she risked a glance at the clock that hung on the kitchen wall. She thought of JJ, torn between wanting him to come now and to stay away and out of danger. It had been a careless decision and Rafe had used this moment to stride towards her. She lifted her weapon of choice but was forced to drop it when he grabbed her wrist and twisted it. He moved that hand to her throat and pushed her back into the counter. His other hand held the knife down by his side. He came in close and she could tell he was high by how dilated and unfocused his pupils were.

“You don’t get to say her name. Not after your pal John B murdered her.” He was close enough that she could feel the warmth of his breath on her face. His hand squeezed a little tighter and her eyes began to well with tears. Grief and anger fueled the tears now threatening to fall, he didn’t get to say that about her friend.

“Liar. We both know that if you hadn’t killed Peterkin then they would both still be alive. You’re the reason she’s dead.” She held his gaze for a few seconds, hoping he could feel the rage radiating off her skin.

Using the hand still around her neck he slammed her head into the cabinet to her left. He released her and she crumpled to the ground as pain exploded in her right cheek. She looked up at him now as he towered over her. He grabbed her roughly by the arm and pulled her up. They both heard the front door open and before Kie could say anything his large hand had covered her mouth. He shushed her again and brought the knife up to rest near her already sore neck. She let out a soft whimper but was unheard by the person in the next room, drowned out by the soft reggae jams Kie liked to listen to when she cleaned.

“Whoa this place is dead.” JJ said out loud after walking into the eatery knowing the summer tourists were less likely to close out the place with the weather getting colder. He heard a shuffling sound and called out to the kitchen. “Hey Kie, what is on the menu tonight?”

Kiara felt as if her heart was going to beat right out of her chest at the sound of her friend’s voice, the knife still pressed lightly to her throat. Rafe leaned in closer and told her to tell JJ she would be right out but pressed the blade in a little closer making the threat clear before dropping the hand from her mouth.

Kie took in a deep shaking breath and called out. “Stay there, I’ll be right out.” And heard a reply in the affirmative from the other room. She did not want to move her feet but was easily pushed along by Rafe.

JJ had had a long day, first working with Pope at his Dad’s store in the morning and then working all evening at the scrap yard. He had been able to talk his way into that job after returning the underwater drone and his Dad’s old boss had been able to see the very real bruises on JJ’s face. Sure, not all of them had been from his old man at the time but whatever helped sell the story and land him the job the better.

JJ sat down on a stool at the bar and ran a hand through his blonde hair. He brought his hands down to look at the dirt still under his nails despite having washed them 3 times since handling the dirty scrap parts. He looked up as the kitchen door opened and the genuine smile that formed whenever he saw Kiara dropped from his face and he stood up quickly from the stool.

“Hey Rafe, man. Please don’t.” He didn’t know what he was exactly pleading with Rafe to do but he just wanted Kie to be safe. “Please, Rafe. What do you want?”

JJ looked at Kie, so small surrounded by Rafe’s much taller frame. He saw the cut on her cheek and didn’t know whether to cry or scream.

Barry had seen JJ arrive and knew it was his turn to join the party. He strolled in through the door and thought that he wasn’t surprised Rafe had ended up holding a knife to the young Pogue groupie’s throat.

“What do we want?” Barry answered JJ’s previous question. “Well I know I want my money. I’m not too sure what he wants.” He gestured towards Rafe and continued. “But it can’t be good.”

JJ looked between Barry and Kie, noticing Rafe’s grip on her arm getting tighter. He turned back to Barry. “I spent it. But I can get it back, I swear I just need some time. Give me a month and I will give it all back to you I swear.” He spoke fast, the fear in him rising.

Barry let out a low chuckle. “A month, you must be crazy. I will be generous though and say a week because I know you are dirt poor, but you’ll find a way.”

A week would be tough, but JJ knew that with the cops still spinning their wheels about alternative theories to the recent island chaos he could not count on them to take care of Rafe and Barry for him. He looked over at Kie releasing a small breath of relief for their chance reprieve. 

“Rafe let her go now, you made your point.” JJ hated seeing Kie so scared, it went against all his long-held truths that his best friend was a badass.

“No. Kie is going to come party with us. Isn’t that right, Kie?” He asked, using the hand that had covered her mouth to stroke her cheek. “We are going to have some long overdue fun.”

“JJ.” Kiara pleaded the same moment her friend took an instinctive step forward. Rafe pressed the knife in slowly and JJ stopped his advance.

JJ raised his hands, needing to resolve this situation quickly. “Hey look man, I will suck your dick if I have to, but there is no way in hell I am letting you leave with her.” He would do anything to protect his friends from being hurt but especially Kie and especially in that way.

Rafe dropped his free hand to encircle Kie tightly around the waist. He looked up at JJ with a sly smile and said, “You’re not my type pogue. But Kie is.” His grip tightened and her feet momentarily left the ground.

JJ turned to Barry hoping to use whatever logic would work in this fucked up situation. “Barry, I need her to get your money. You know me, you think I can do this on my own. I need her.” He chanced a look at Kiara and almost cried at the fear and sadness in her eyes.

Barry seemed to think for a minute before looking over at Rafe. “Let her go man.”

Rafe’s head snapped to Barry, he hated feeling powerless by Barry, and spoke through gritted teeth. “You said I could do whatever I wanted to her.”

JJ chanced a look at Barry and knew he didn’t like to be questioned either, but luckily, he held all the cards. 

“And I didn’t unless it threatens me getting my money back. So, drop her.” Barry commanded.

Rafe dropped his hands and shoved her roughly to the ground at his feet. JJ moved to go to her but stopped when Barry pointed at him. “You, fucker, have one week to get me my money. The bitch is safe for now but screw me over and I’ll make you watch.”

As soon as Barry and Rafe started moving again so did JJ. By the time he was over to Kiara and was helping her to stand up the two men had left. She was shaking so hard when JJ helped to into a nearby chair. Her head was hung low and he crouched in front of her to try and see her face. She finally looked at him, some of her loose curls falling to her shoulders, and a confused look flashed on her face.

“Did you offer to suck a dick for me?” She asked, her heart rate still racing but steadying more with every second. 

“What you don’t think I’d suck a dick to save you?” He questioned. 

“You know I’d suck a dick to save you too, right?” She didn’t answer him but replied earnestly. 

JJ let out a sigh and replied. “I’d never let you do that.”

She frowned, caring about someone goes both ways. “My life isn’t worth more than yours, JJ.” 

He reached up, pushing the loose curls behind her ear and frowned at the wound on her cheek. His hand remained near her temple and he looked back into her eyes before saying with a soft smile. “Of course it is.”

“JJ.” She said his name sadly but didn’t get to say any more before he quickly pulled back his hand and stood up from his crouched position on the floor.

“You need ice. It’s going to swell like a bitch.” He said already heading to the kitchen and the hand she had been about place over the top of where he had cradled her head fell into her lap. 

The energy and adrenaline that had been coursing through her veins evaporated, leaving her tired, drained and empty. She looked over at the clock near the bar and it read 9:25pm. Time to close, she thought to herself. She walked over to the door, flying on autopilot, she turned the open sign to close and locked the door.

This is how JJ found her when he returned with the ice pack, Kie still holding the door lock and looking down at her hands. He didn’t want to spook her, so he stood there for a minute just watching her. He had known her a long time and not including this last month Kie had never experienced this kind of pain or fear. JJ had seen a lot of violence in his young life, as much as he hated his mother for leaving him alone with his father, he was glad that she had escaped. The cut on Kiara’s cheek had echoed ones his father had left on him many times before. JJ promised himself in this moment that he would do whatever it took to ensure that that was the last bruise to ever touch her skin.

At some point Kiara’s mind had returned to her body and she realized JJ was there. “I… I don’t want to be here right now.” She stammered and looked back out at the empty street.

“Yeah, sure let’s get you home.” JJ replied.

“No!” Kiara’s raised her voice then looked around guiltily, she felt like she had screamed in the middle of a library. The Wreck didn’t feel like her family anymore. It had lost its summertime glow and now she wanted to be anywhere but there. “I don’t want my parents to see me.”

She had meant to say that she hadn’t wanted her parents to see the bruise but instead felt as though she really didn’t want her parents to see the real Kiara. She had been so torn with wanting to help her friends and try to respect her parents. Kie didn’t want the worry and pity that she had seen so recently in their eyes again tonight.

“Okay, no problem. Here take this.” JJ handed her the ice pack and she lifted it gingerly to her slightly swollen cheekbone. “Don’t move, I will be right back.”

He made sure Kie had heard him before rushing back to the kitchen to put the leftovers in a large take away bag and put the discarded spoon on the kitchen floor into the sink. He grabbed her bag and jacket from the locker near the kitchen and brought everything back over to where she was standing. He saw the knife that had threatened Kiara’s life and dropped it carefully in the sink before giving it a quick rinse.

JJ returned to Kiara and wordlessly helped her drape her jacket over her shoulders. He was able to hold the bag of leftovers and swing Kie’s backpack over his shoulder before he switched off the lights and locked up.

The ride to the Chateau had been quiet. JJ’s fingers tapped nervously on the steering wheel as he shot glances at Kiara every few seconds. She hadn’t seemed to notice, keeping her head down with the ice held firmly to her face. She only looked up once they had made the familiar last turn before arriving at their dead friends’ former home.


	2. Trust Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the events at the Wreck, JJ takes Kie to the one place they have always gone to feel safe, The Chateau.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay you guys asked for it, here is chapter 2. Thank you for all the amazing comments, kudos and bookmarks. I appreciate it all so much. 
> 
> No beta, all mistakes are my own. I do not own any of the characters.

They rolled up close to the Chateau and turned off the van. The beach shack was dark and quiet. JJ hadn’t been there since the early morning and every other inhabitant it’s ever had was gone.

“It feels weird being here without him.” Kiara spoke for the first time since leaving her parent’s restaurant. JJ looked down at his lap and then turned to look at her. She was still staring straight ahead, the ice pack now sitting in her lap. “It looks so empty.”

“We can go somewhere else if you want?” JJ didn’t want to upset her; it had been his home away from home for a long time and full-time home for the last couple of weeks. But he understood how she felt, John B had usually been there or at least been close by when Kie had visited the Chateau. 

“There’s nowhere else we could go.” She stated sadly, exiting the van before she had time to dwell on that fact. 

JJ grabbed the food and her bag and followed her into the house. He put the leftovers in the fridge after putting her backpack down by the sofa bed. 

Kiara’s hands had begun to shake. “I’m gonna go to the bathroom. You should eat your dinner.”

She was already in the bathroom and had closed the door before JJ had a chance to say anything in response. He opened one the containers with some grilled fish in it and put it in the microwave. He ran his hands roughly through his hair while he waited for his food to heat up. When he had taken that money from Barry, he had felt sick of being messed with and he had acted impulsively. Everything he had ever touched had turned to shit, at least that was what his Dad had always told him. But that had never applied to the Pogues, they still wanted him, and they still cared about him. It was certainly not the first time in his life, but JJ knew he had fucked up and it terrified him.

Kiara turned to the sink to wash her hands and saw her face for the first time that evening. The cut that must have come from her face hitting the handle of the cabinet was not currently bleeding but was still bright red. The surrounding cheek was covered in a large purple bruise. She lifted her hand to touch the wound and winced at the pain. She stared at her reflection so long it had started to feel like she was looking at a stranger. But it wasn’t a stranger, it was her own face covered in that deep purple mark. She lifted her head to look at her neck and was able to see a thin red line where Rafe had held the knife. She had felt pain when he pressed the knife in by hadn’t realized it had broken the skin. She moved her hand to her throat to inspect the cut and found it to be more of a scratch then cut, but it still hurt. 

She let out a shaky breath and looked into her own eyes, she didn’t know when she had started crying but tears now ran down both sides of her face. Another shaky breath turned into an even shakier breath. She couldn’t breathe. For the second time in a few weeks Rafe had had his hands around her neck. She could almost still feel him there, surrounding her. Her breathing had now become panicked rapid breaths and she didn’t know how to stop them. 

JJ had been picking at his food, Kie had only been gone a couple of minutes but he felt anxious now having her out of his sight. Not feeling as hungry as he had an hour ago, he put his meal down and headed to the hallway where the bathroom was. He was about to knock to ask if she was okay but stopped when he heard her from behind the door.

“Kie!” He called out but the only response was the sounds of her desperate attempts to fill her lungs. “Kie! Hey, I’m right here. Are you okay?! Kie? Kiara, can you answer me?”

She could hear him but didn’t know how to answer him and she finally sobbed out his name. It was enough of an invitation for him and he was glad to find that the bathroom door had not been locked.

When JJ opened the door, he was surprised to find her sitting on the floor with her back against the bathtub. “Hey. Hey Kie, it’s going to be okay.” He got down on the floor and crawled the last few feet to sit beside her. Her hands were balled into fists around the old towel that was laying on the floor. “Kiara?”

He said her name again and this time she turned to look at him. She released one big choking sob before he put his arms around her. She buried her head in his chest, choosing now to hold onto his shirt to stable herself. 

They stayed there for long time while her desperate crying became soft sobs and shuddering breaths. He held her tight and rubbed circles into her back as she calmed down. Tears had also burned in his eyes and dropped softly into her hair. He hated seeing her like this, as much as he wanted her to, he hated that she needed him like this.

She started to mumble something, and he loosened his hold on her so she could lift her head to speak. “I turned around and he was just standing there, and he grabbed the knife before I could stop him.” She spoke quickly, her hands released their tight grip on JJ’s shirt and she laid them flat on his chest. “Why is he doing this?”

Despite the sketchy drug dealer threatening them, Rafe still felt like the bigger threat. He knew them, it wasn’t about the money or even payback for him. It was personal, he wanted something from Kie, something she would never give willingly and that scared them both more. They knew Barry was capable of terrible things but Rafe was a confirmed killer in their eyes and it had changed him, not for the better.

“I don’t know, Kie. He has always been a creep but something in him has snapped.” She listened as he spoke and inhaled his signature scent of sweat, weed, and the ocean. It never smelled bad, it was just JJ, it was comfortable and familiar. As wild and as careless as he could be with his own life Kiara had always felt safe when JJ was on her side. She lifted her head and looked into his eyes as he spoke. “I swear to God, he won’t lay a hand on you again. I will kill him before that happens.”

“I know.” She said, she ended their eye contact and pulled herself from his embrace. “Um, I should text my parents, tell them I won’t be coming home tonight. Tell them not to worry.”

They should be worried, JJ thought as Kie pulled herself up from the floor and left the bathroom in search of her phone. JJ sometimes thought about what Kie’s life would have been like if she hadn’t returned to them after her so called ‘Kook Year’. He used to imagine it full of friends, money, and opportunity. She would have had so much love and happiness that he used to feel angry at her for wasting her life with them in the Cut. Would she still have been in danger if she hadn’t returned to them. Would she still have been safe with Rafe so close in her life?

He slammed his fist down on the tiled floor, the familiar sense of rage filling him from when Rafe had mentioned that Kie had looked hot at Midsummers. The way he had said her name that night had felt like a threat. A threat he had now decided to act on. JJ knew now that they had to find a way to get Barry off their backs, taking his misadventure with robbing a drug dealer off the table made it easier to prove Rafe and Ward were the villains of this tragic story. The tale Ward had weaved was that Sarah had been a hysterical lovesick teenager brainwashed by a troubled boy driven to murder and violence by the disappearance of his father. The cops had bought it, but of course they did. Ward was King of the Kooks and John B was a reckless kid even more lost after his treasure obsessed, sometimes absentee father was gone for good. JJ had tried to convince the now Sheriff Shoup that they were wrong about everything. But Sarah and John B never had the chance to make formal statements and the cops were right that JJ, Pope, and Kiara were not on the tarmac the day that Peterkin was shot and killed. Also, the fact that John B had run, in the eyes of the police department had meant he was guilty.

JJ eventually got off the bathroom floor and found Kiara sitting on the edge of the sofa bed. She put her phone away just as he came to sit next to her.

“We need a plan to get the money.” She had decided that now was not the time to think about what would have happened if Barry had let Rafe take her. Now was the time for strategizing and for plans. “Do you think you can get any money back if you return the hot tub?” 

“I can try but we can sort that out tomorrow.” He wanted to start planning too, because he knew they had to be proactive about their situation, but he also knew it could wait. “You need pain killers and rest. Trust me.”

When she didn’t object, he left the sofa and went to the kitchen to get a couple of Tylenols and a glass of water. She took them from him, swallowing the pills and gulping down the water.

“Thanks.” She handed back the empty glass and he returned it to the kitchen.

“You should try and sleep.” She nodded and shuffled her way up the sofa bed to get under the sheets. Kiara had thought it was odd that even though JJ was the only one in the house, the sofa bed had still been made up like he was expecting company. “I will be down the hall if you need me.”

“Wait-” She called but suddenly felt shy or too vulnerable. “Can… Can you sleep here with me?”

She hadn’t meant to sound so sheepish, but it felt like almost too much to ask him to do. JJ again felt that same division within him; he wanted her to want him to stay but not like this.

“Yeah, sure. No problem.” He looked down at himself, still wearing the dirty clothes he had sweated in all day. “I need to have a shower first. Is that okay?”

She nodded and he disappeared down the hall. She sat there for a minute before hearing the shower turn on. Suddenly feeling uneasy she got up and went to every door and window she could find and locked them. She returned to the bed and laid down to stare at the ceiling.

JJ wanted to be quick, again not wanting to be away from Kie for too long. He was glad she had asked him to stay with her on the sofa, he didn’t know if he would have felt okay being so far away from her. He had grabbed a pair of cotton shorts and an old T-shirt to wear, feeling weird about sleeping next to Kie in the boxers he normally wore.

He turned off the lights in the house and went to lock the doors but found that she had beaten him to it. The Chateau never used to have locked doors, it was always open for the Pogues to come and go as they pleased. But they lived in a different world now, they weren’t safe anymore and they had real and dangerous enemies.

JJ climbed in the bed next to Kiara. At any other time, he would have made a joke about one of them making a move or how she was just dying to get him into bed with her. But he wasn’t thinking that now. 

“Thank you.” She had said it so softly he almost didn’t hear her. He turned his head to find her staring at him. “For getting there when you did. For being there and for being here.”

The sadness had returned to her eyes, but she was thankful that no tears formed this time.

“Always.” He replied with a more serious tone than he had intended. They stared at each other for a moment before she turned her gaze back to the ceiling and then closed her eyes.

“Goodnight JJ.”

He looked up at the ceiling too. “Goodnight Kie.”

…

When JJ opened his eyes in the morning, he wished he had had that moment when you almost forget the bad thing that had happened the night before. The nightmare that had woken him up was fading fast but visions of him finding Kie bloody and broken still lingered. He tried to blink the images away and was about to get up when he felt her stir. At some time in the night he had turned over to face away from her and she had moved over to press her whole body against his. He could feel her small fist where she had grabbed a handful of his shirt just below his shoulder blade.

Kiara stirred again, releasing the hold on JJ’s shirt and rolling over to the other side. JJ looked back over his shoulder to see her curled up sleeping form. As carefully as he could he removed himself from the bed and grabbed his phone to message Pope. He decided to let Kiara sleep in if he could.

He sat on the step on the back porch and decided weed was what he needed right now. He had taken his last drag and dumped the roach in the nearest ashtray just as Pope was pulling up.

“Hey JJ, what’s up man? Your text was pretty vague.” Pope waived his phone around in his hand to emphasize his point. “Get to the Chateau now. 911. With everything we have been through, that’s not funny.”

“I wasn’t trying to be funny. Look I need you to be calm. I don’t want you to wake Kie up.” JJ took a few steps to close the gap between them, pointing to the house where their friend was still sleeping. “Something happened last night-”

“Kie slept here last night?” Pope interrupted him with a quiet but urgent tone.

JJ saw the look on his face and knew that Pope and Kiara had kissed not long ago. He also knew that that was before their best friend drowned and to the best of his knowledge, they hadn’t spent any time alone since.

“Pope. She didn’t want to go home last night, and I didn’t want her to be alone after what happened.” Pope had been staring at the back of the house but turned his attention back to JJ when he continued. “Barry and Rafe showed up at The Wreck, I have one week to get Barry his money back or…”

JJ trailed off he didn’t know how to tell Pope the extent of their threats. Before JJ could elaborate Kie stepped out onto the porch.

“He’s going to kill him.” Kie interjected and both boys turned to look at her. The anger in JJ flared red when he saw her face, the bruise had become larger and darker overnight. “Barry said he would kill JJ.”

She had looked at him as she said his name and a brief look flashed in her eyes. He didn’t know why she hadn’t mentioned Rafe’s threats or Barry’s final warning.

“What the fuck? Kiara oh my god.” Pope exclaimed while taking the few steps to reach her and Kie looked from JJ to him. “They did this?”

Pope raised his hand to indicate her injured face and a placed a warm hand on her shoulder. 

“Rafe was high as usual, fucking psycho. It looks worse than it feels.” She tried to play it off. She looked at his face and noticed the angry tears welling in his eyes. She placed a hand on his face before changing to a calmer, soothing tone. “Hey, it’s okay. We will find a way to get the money and get Barry off our backs for good. I’m okay, I promise.”

JJ had watched as she placed her hand on Pope’s face and not for the first time, felt like he was intruding in a private moment. He ducked his head and turned to look out over the marsh.

Kiara had seen JJ in her periphery and a sudden unexpected wave of guilt had made her drop her hand away from Pope and take a subtle step back. She spoke louder now, making it clear she was addressing both of her friends. “I’m fine. But those guys are dangerous, and we need to get that money back so nobody gets hurt.”

She had said those last few words directly at JJ. “Pope you go with JJ to see if you can get any money back from the hot tub or to see if anyone wants to buy the generator. I have to go home. You guys can drop me off on the way.”

They had all piled into the van and pulled up outside Kiara’s generous Kook mini mansion 25 minutes later. Pope had driven the van, JJ had offered Kie the front seat but insisted on sitting in the back. She jumped out of the back and came to stand by JJ’s window.

“What are you going to tell your folks?” JJ asked cautiously. He knew she wasn’t going to tell her parents the truth, she hadn’t even told Pope the truth, not entirely.

“I’ll make something up.” She reassured them, squaring her backpack on her shoulders and running her hand through her curls.

“Kie you’re a terrible liar.” Pope said leaning forward on the steering wheel to see past JJ.

Kiara took a deep breath and flashed him, what she hoped was a confident smile. “Don’t worry.”

She locked eyes with JJ and the smile faltered, the worry and confusion she hadn’t wanted to see from her parents was plastered all over his face. She took another deep breath, not breaking eye contact before continuing. “Trust me. I’m getting better at it.”

She turned and walked up her long driveway. Her friends waited until she had reached her front door and turned to wave them off before pulling away. JJ watched her house disappear over his shoulder before turning back around. He noticed something on the floor by his feet and leant down to pick it up. It was the ice pack Kiara had left in the car the night before, it had a small spot of her blood on it where she had held it to her face. A range of emotions rolled through him, but he gulped them down and put the terrible reminder of his friends pain out of sight. 

JJ wondered what she had meant by getting better at lying. Did she mean about not telling Pope the truth about what exactly had happened the night before or was she talking about something else? Again, this invisible tether appeared, the further her got from her the more anxious he became. As much as it pained him, he had to put Kiara out of his mind. He had a mission. Get the money by any means necessary and find a way to take Rafe out of the picture. If the cops wouldn’t get off their asses and do something about him, then JJ would.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the whole non sexual sharing a bed thing is cliche but it is also a classic. I wanted to include Pope because as much as I want JJ and Kiara to be together, this is a Pogue problem and they can't afford to lose any more of those.
> 
> I haven't written anymore yet and I realistically don't exactly know where I want to take this. Hopefully I can figure out a plan in the next day or so and decide where this train is going. If I get this train to its final stop it will be Jiara angst/fluff, probably not smut because I am terrible at writing that.
> 
> Anyway, please leave comments and Kudos, if you want!
> 
> MissyXoxo


	3. Plans Coming Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plans are made to get the money they need. JJ keeps a close eye on Kie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was going to be shorter than the first 2 chapters and then whoops now it is a bit longer. Thanks for all the lovely comments and the many kudos.
> 
> Trigger warning.   
> Remember to check the tags for Referenced/Implied Rape/Noncon.
> 
> No beta so all mistakes are mine.

Pope and JJ had been driving in silence since leaving Kiara’s house and were headed towards the large outdoor activity depot near the ferry docks. 

“What the hell happened JJ?” Pope finally said briefly turning his gaze to his friend in the passenger seat. “Why did Kie get hurt?”

Why wasn’t it you? That was what JJ assumed Pope had wanted to say. JJ didn’t know how to respond. He rubbed his hand over his face and looked out of the window.

“Did they do it to prove a point? To make sure you did what they asked?” Pope seemed to almost be talking to himself, but the implication was clear. I don’t think he wanted to, but he blamed JJ for Kiara being hurt. JJ couldn’t blame him; he knew it was his fault she had been in the crosshairs. He had hated Barry shoving the shotgun in their faces and for trying to rip them off. But it wasn’t until he had realized who Barry was that he decided to make it more of a big deal than it needed to be. Barry was his Dad’s dealer, so he was responsible for the violent coked-out attacks from his father. When his dad was drunk the beatings were sloppier and more haphazard. The times he had come out of his room to see remnants of white powder on a plate by the couch had been some of the worst. His dad was more focused, faster and didn’t tire as easily. And that was what he had thought of when he had looked at Barry’s license and decided he had owed him more than just leaving him in the dirt by the road.

“I got there too late.” The rage was building in him again, no way to stop it without Kiara’s caring eyes to sober him. He punched the dash in front of him and huffed out an angry breath. “I saw her face when I got there, and I swear I would have killed him, but he had a knife to Kie’s throat. I couldn’t do anything.”

“Barry?” Pope asked.

They locked eyes as JJ responded. “No. Rafe.” He said his name with all the venom he could muster. 

“That fucker has gone too far.” Pope had been victim to Rafe’s violence before and had felt a deep catharsis when he had found him with his hands around Kiara’s neck and was able to stop him. He had let himself cross a line that day but now he thought it would have been safer for his friends if he hadn’t let him go. “We have to stop him.”

“We will.” Pope didn’t even know how far Rafe had planned to go with Kiara and JJ decided not to say anything until he had spoken to her first. 

…

The haggling and selling of all of JJ’s impulse buys had taken the whole day. They had fared better than he had expected. With basically selling the hot tub back to the supplier and selling off the generator, out of the almost $25,000 they were able to get about $18,000 back. They only needed seven more grand and still had six days to get it.

JJ had messaged Kiara a few times during the day to check in with her. She had always responded straight away but with never more than an ‘I’m good’ or an ‘I’m fine’. He hadn’t believed her of course but didn’t want to push it.

JJ had panned to use his natural ability to bullshit to sell off the stuff they needed to, but it had turned out Pope had been way better suited for the job. Pope’s dad’s reputation on the island had opened the door to sales pitches and his aptitude for numbers and logic problems made Pope a great negotiator. They had even borrowed his dad truck to return all the stuff that they could. 

They had returned to the Chateau around 5pm for an early dinner, which was technically an extremely late lunch. Kiara had responded to the third text in a row with ‘I’m fine’. JJ frowned at his phone and put it down beside him. He and Pope had been in eating in a comfortable silence, the usual banter and laughter not seeming welcome at the Chateau anymore.

“Kiara shot me down.” Pope had said it so quietly that JJ decided to pretend he hadn’t heard him. But it turned out Pope wanted to talk about it, so he looked at JJ and continued. “Two days after the storm. She came by the store and we talked.”

JJ’s curiosity peaked, he hadn’t asked either of them about what they were to each other now, in all honestly, he had been afraid of the answer. “I didn’t know that. Sorry bro.”

JJ didn’t know why he apologized, it had nothing to do with him, but he hated seeing any of his friends hurt.

“She said she had been caught up in the whirlwind, with the fight with Rafe and everything with John B. That after that night she hadn’t wanted to lose another friend. She wanted to just go back to the way it was before everything had gone to shit.” Pope spoke sadly looking between his hands and JJ’s face. “I think it’s for the best though. Did I tell you I was able to organize another interview for my scholarship? Yeah, I think with everything that happened with John B and the gold, they were curious about what I had to say, I guess.”

A smile had returned to his face and JJ smiled back at him as he patted him playfully on his back. “That is great news bro. You deserve it. This is everything you wanted.”

JJ had a genuine smile on his face for the first time in a long time. He didn’t know what part of what Pope had said had made him feel happier; his conversation with Kie or his second chance at the future he wanted. He pushed that thought away, knowing it would only lead to more trouble right now.

Pope hadn’t stayed much longer after that, the sun had almost finished setting and he had to get home before his curfew. JJ had sat on the couch on the porch for 20 minutes contemplating messaging Kie again. He finally decided to just go to her house. She lived in Figure Eight and so did Rafe, he didn’t like how little distance there was between the two of them.

He pulled over just before her house. If she wanted to be alone, she could be alone with JJ watching the place. He settled in his seat, he knew he would sleep here all night and hoped to find a comfortable position to rest. 

Kiara had spent most of the day reassuring the people in her life that she was fine. She supposed if she said it enough times, she might start to believe it herself. Her parents had freaked out when she had gotten home that morning and seen her face. She had told them that a Kook bitch she had known from school had gone off at her about John B and how he had killed Sarah. It was somewhat true, but she did let her parents assume she was talking about a girl and not a 19-year-old male. Kie told her parents that she had thrown the first punch and that the girl had just got in a lucky shot. She explained that she wanted to spend the night with her friends to comfort each other. Her parents didn’t question her when she had told them she had started the fight and she didn’t know what to make of that fact.

She had been reading in her room after dinner and came downstairs to get a glass of water and some more pain killers. She was just leaving the kitchen when she noticed her mother looking out the window in the living room.

“What are you looking at?” Kiara asked on her way back up the stairs.

“I think there is a sketchy van watching the house.” Her mom replied, trying to subtly peak through the overly ornate curtains.

Kiara froze on the first step, her hand holding onto the banister to stop herself from falling. Her first thought was that Barry had changed his mind and let Rafe off his leash. Or maybe Rafe had gone rogue, wanting to hurt her more than follow Barry’s lead. She rushed over to the window, prepared to confirm her worst fears but released a long sigh when she recognized the Pogue Mobile.

“It’s fine Mom, it’s JJ or Pope. Probably just checking in.” She turned to her mother, with a sad smile. “It’s been hard for all us since that night. They probably just want some company. It’s fine.”

She hadn’t been lying about it being hard since John B and Sarah had drowned but she knew that’s not why JJ was parked outside her house.

JJ had been watching the house for more than an hour, there were lights on inside but there had been no real movement from the people inside. He jumped when the verandah light came on above the front door. He tried to sink lower in his seat when he saw Kie come out of her house and head towards him. He almost tried to hide for a minute before seeing the angry look on her face and sat up straight. She came around to the passenger side door and got in. 

“Hey Kie.” He said, trying to sound casual.

“Don’t Hey Kie, me.” He knew she wouldn’t be exactly happy he was camped outside her house, but he honestly hadn’t thought she would be this mad at him. She was facing the windscreen with her arms folded and breathing angrily through her nose. “My mom told me a sketchy car was watching the house. And do you know what my first thought was?”

She turned to look at him, but he let her continue. “I thought it was Rafe. I thought he was parked outside my house watching me. And it scared me to death. And then I look out the window and see this.” She gestured to the van they were sitting in.

“Kie, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to freak you out. I just came to keep an eye on things in case…” He trailed off, deciding not to finish that sentence, unfortunately Kiara finished for him.

“In case Rafe does show up here. You think he would?”

“No, I don’t. But I wasn’t willing to take the risk that I was wrong.” JJ leaned his head back on the seat. He didn’t want to admit that he was there because he hated being so far away from her. “I’m sorry I scared you.”

The anger in Kiara had begun to slowly fade the longer she sat in the car with JJ. Eventually, she sighed and said. “I know. I just… I think maybe I’m not fine.”

“Shocker.” JJ joked, before he could stop himself. She chuckled softly and he continued. “Sorry, but I thought it was pretty obvious you weren’t okay. That’s why I’m here though in case you’re not fine.”

She smiled at him and leaned over to rest her head on his chest. He moved his arms around her, to hold her up. She had her ear pressed to his chest and she could feel his heart rate pick up a little. She smiled but didn’t want to question why it made her feel so happy.

“Thanks.” She said softly.

“No problem.” He didn’t want to upset her, but he was curious about some things. He hesitated before asking in a soft tone. “Why didn’t you tell Pope everything that happened last night?”

He felt her become still between his arms and he regretted saying something that would ruin the moment. Kiara had been watching his hands as they encircled his wrists to hold her body against his. She looked at the way his hands had twitched when he had asked her that question.

“I don’t know.” She replied simply. She thought about it for a minute and replied in a slightly detached tone. “I guess I didn’t know how to say that my dead friends’ older brother who recently murdered a police officer threatened to rape me.”

JJ pressed his lips together in a hard line when she had said the word rape. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back, opening them again to reveal angry tears which he tried to blink away. 

“You got some of the money back so that’s a start.” Kiara had wanted to change the subject and JJ told her about what he and Pope had been up to that day. She was still encircled in his arms and the warmth of his body was making her feel sleepy. 

JJ could feel her getting more tired but selfishly didn’t ask whether she planned to go back inside to sleep in her own bed. He wanted to ask her something else but didn’t quite know how.

“Pope told me that you guys talked.” He hesitated for a moment before Kie made a soft hum, like she was listening. “About his feelings and about the two of you.”

She mumbled something and then yawned before saying with a lot of fatigue in her voice. “It wasn’t going to work. I don’t feel that way about him. Didn’t want to lead him on.”

“Kie?” He said her name but all he heard in reply was the even breaths that meant she had finally fallen asleep. He didn’t want to wake her so resigned to the fact that he was going to be sleeping sitting up in the van.

The sun had just begun to rise when JJ opened his eyes. During the early hours of the morning Kie had turned over slightly so that the back of her head now rested against his chest and he looked straight down at the bruise on her cheek. His arms that were holding her were now being hugged by hers so that they were now held tight to her chest. He watched her sleep for a few minutes when he noticed someone standing by his window.

“Jesus fuck!” He almost jumped out of his skin at the sight of Kiara’s father staring at them. Kie had woken up with a start and quickly pulled herself away from JJ to look at her dad.

“Kiara inside the house. Now.” JJ looked at her and she nodded hastily to her father in response. She looked at JJ apologetically and mouthed a quick goodbye before hurriedly getting out of the van. JJ turned back to the man who had interrupted his morning peace. “Go home, JJ.”

“Yes, sir.” JJ responded. He shared a look with Kie as she walked back to her house. He thought to himself that she looked almost as sad and guilty as he had felt. He knew why he had felt sad, her dad had interrupted a moment of real peace when he had woken up, despite the evidence of their recent violence staring him straight in the face. The guilt had surfaced because he had felt so at peace, he had felt so happy waking up for the second day in a row with Kiara. Was he allowed to feel so happy with Kie when their friends had died, and extremely dangerous people wanted to hurt them? He knew why he had felt sadness and guilt but wondered why Kiara had had the same look on her face.

…

Rafe watched as JJ pulled away and drove off in the old beat up van. He had parked a little further down and he hadn’t planned on doing anything when he found himself on her street in the early hours of the morning. The cocaine that had burned in his system had left him feeling antsy and he had gotten in the car from Barry’s intending to return home. He had planned to drive around for a while until he had come down enough to go home. Rafe hadn’t known where he was going until he drove past the familiar house and seen the van parked just down from the home’s driveway. He knew the house because he had dropped Sarah there a couple times when Kiara and she had been joined at the hip. When he had gone past the van, he had seen Kiara asleep, wrapped up in JJ’s arms. He had watched them all night from his car down the street and had seen Kiara’s father find them just after sunrise. 

He thought to himself that perhaps if he had had his gun, he would have done something. JJ was a decent fighter and wouldn’t go down easy and Kiara was a scrappy fighter when she needed to be. He didn’t know if he could wait the remaining 6 days like Barry had wanted them to. He was sick of taking orders from Barry, tired of being under his thumb. He was Rafe Cameron after all, he bowed down to no one.

…

They had come up with a plan to get the rest of the money they needed before the deadline. JJ hadn’t liked the plan when Kiara had suggested it.

“No. No way. We can’t rob your parents to pay off my debt.” JJ had said when Kiara had told them she planned to break into her parents’ online bank account and transfer the remaining $7000 that they needed to her own account. “We can figure something else out.”

“Yeah well if we can’t, it’s not just you who has to pay.” She stared at JJ defiantly, but remembered Pope was there and continued. “Barry and Rafe will come after all of us if we don’t come up with the 25k. Besides, since when are you the one that’s against stealing?”

“Since, it’s your parents. They may be Kooks but I don’t want to give them anymore reasons that you shouldn’t hang out with us. I don’t want to prove them right about us just wanting your money.” JJ said, folding his arms over his chest as they sat in the living room of the Chateau. 

“JJ, they don’t think that.” She hadn’t sounded as confident as she had wanted to because truth be told her parents had said something like that to her on multiple occasions. “They know that our friendship goes deeper than free food at the Wreck or something like that.”

“Kie are you sure you want to do this?” Pope had asked, thinking back to when his father had caught him stealing petrol and they had fought about it. “It’s your parents, if you get caught it could change your relationship forever.”

JJ took a deep breath. He didn’t want his friend to risk her relationship with her parents. He hadn’t even seen his father since he had stolen the keys to The Phantom and it had gone down in the sea along with John B. He was thankful he had some spare clothes at the Chateau and that he and John had been similar in size. He didn’t want to dwell on his complicated feelings about his father and was glad when Kie spoke up.

“I want to do this. I’m going to do this and that’s final.” Kiara had ended the conversation there. It was late afternoon by this point, and they had been arguing about Kie’s plan for more than an hour. She looked at her phone before releasing an exasperated sigh. “I have to go, they will be out for another little while so I can do before they get home.”

JJ stood at the same time she did. “Do you want me to come with you?” He asked. “You might need a look out?”

Kie thought about it for a second. On the one had if she got caught and JJ was with her then her parents would definitely think that she was doing it for him. However, she had fallen into this pattern with JJ over the last couple days that she didn’t want to break it. All of her relationships with her closest friends had changed so much in the last month, her one with JJ being the only one for the better. She looked into his eyes and saw a flash of the mischief that once lived there but had be absent as of late.

“Sure.” She said, grabbing her bag and turning around before either of the boys could see the flush that filled her unmarked cheek. Warmth filled her body despite the cool evening air outside and she knew it was because JJ was once again by her side and she wasn’t going home alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that this chapter had a lot bits in it but it would have ended up being a bunch of tiny chapters otherwise.
> 
> So I plan to move forward a bit in the next chapter. Filling in some time with some fluff and angst before getting to a dangerous showdown in the chapter after that. Depending on how the action and the aftermath go this story will probably end up being about 6 chapters long.
> 
> Thanks again for all the encouragement!! Also thank you to all the creatives on here, youtube and tumblr for keeping me inspired!!!
> 
> MissyXoxo


	4. Unwelcome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Plans go well and JJ has some feelings.
> 
> Please read tags and warnings. Referenced/Implied Child Abuse

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I need some tension to build with JJ and Kiara before all hell breaks loose.
> 
> Thanks again for all the generous comments, they really keep me focused on the story.
> 
> No beta so all the mistakes are mine.

They left the van parked on the street outside Kiara’s house. JJ had only been inside a couple times because of the unspoken rule; Pogues in a Kook mansion were the perfect example of a fish out of water. Kiara liked to distance herself from her Kook life, so they usually hung out anywhere but her house. It wasn’t as big as the Cameron estate, but it had more bathrooms than occupants, so it was basically a palace compared to where the rest of the Pogues lived. 

“Ok, my Dad’s computer is in the study.” Kiara whispered as they came through the door and stepped into the tiled foyer. “They are at a dinner with some friends so we should have some time.”

“Why are we whispering?” JJ asked, also whispering. “This is your house, and no one’s home, right?”

Kiara stood up a little straighter not realizing she was kind of sneaking around. “Yeah okay I guess I was just caught up in the whole caper of it all. This way.”

JJ chuckled and followed her as she headed down the hallway to a large door at the end. The study was so big it could have fit half the Chateau inside it. One whole wall was made entirely out of bookshelves, filled with more books than JJ had seen in his life.

“Holy shit, sometimes I forget you’re only Pogue on the inside. But then I see you have a god damn library in your house.” JJ stared in awe at the wall of expensive looking books. “I think some of these books are worth more than my house.”

Kie was now sitting at her father’s desk and he turned around in time to see her roll her eyes. She huffed before she started talking animatedly. “It’s ridiculous, I love to read as much as the next person but you’re right some of those books could pay someone’s rent for a year or feed so many homeless people.”

She had been rambling while looking at the computer screen but raised her head to find JJ staring at her with a goofy grin on his face. “What are you smiling at?”

“You.” His reply made the color in her cheeks return and she looked back at the screen. He had seen her blush and his smile got wider. “You care so much about so many things. You’re gonna save the world one day Kie.”

She looked up at him again and the intense gleam in his eyes made her heart race. This time it was JJ that blushed, and he ducked his head and turned to look out the window. “So how is it going over there James Bond?”

“Not to sound like super cliché but I’m in.” She felt this sense of pride and joy fill her when he let out a loud genuine laugh. She hadn’t seen him laugh like that in a long time, none of them really had had a reason to lately. “It should only take a minute.”

“Your Dad trusts you with access to his accounts?” JJ asked, his mood becoming suddenly somber. 

“They don’t know I have full ‘access’ but they allow me to take funds if its an emergency.” She looks back down at the computer before she understands what he had really said. He hadn’t asked about her parents he had only mentioned her father. She hesitated for a moment, not sure how to bring up the topic with JJ without him shutting her down. “Have you been home since…?”

For the last couple of weeks, the Chateau had been his home, but he knew that wasn’t what she was asking, and he finished the question for her. “Since I stole his boat and it sunk with our best friend on it? No, I haven’t.” He was silent after that and Kiara thought that meant he didn’t want to say anymore on the topic. She was able to confirm the transfer of funds and log out of the computer before he continued speaking.

“He didn’t remember. He didn’t remember what had happened the last time I was there.” He continued, one arm resting on the wall as if he were watching something very intently out of the window. His voice started to break slightly as the emotion built. “He told me he loved me. He hugged me. He hugged me?”

He had said it as a question because it had made him so confused to think about. He dropped his hand from the wall and stared the ground, he bit his lip to try to stop it from quivering. At this point Kiara had stood up and had moved out from behind the desk. He sensed her and looked up into her sad eyes, and the tears had started to well in his own without his permission.

“And do you want to know the fucked-up thing? I hugged him back. I told him I loved him too. And I don’t know if it was a lie.” She had taken the few steps it took to reach him and like that night in the hot tub she wrapped her arms around him. He pulled her close and took a deep breath filled with the scent of her shampoo. He took a couple deep breaths before taking a step back from her. He could sense the emotion building and he didn’t want her to be in firing line if he exploded.

“What gave him the right? I know who he is. I know what he is. I have known for a very long time.” He poked himself in the chest as he spoke, his volume rising. “I took it because that’s what I was given. But he tells me he loves me? He hugs me. He has been nothing but shit to me my whole life. Why can’t I hate him?!”

He drops his arms to his side in defeat. JJ would never have had this kind of emotion with her in past, not this sober anyway. This new pattern they had found changed something; JJ felt comfortable enough to be truly vulnerable with her. Kie closed the gap between them again, raising her hands to place on both sides of his face. She took a deep, settling breath before she spoke.

“I don’t know. You don’t have to know. He is your Dad and he is horrible, but he is your dad and you are allowed to have complicated feelings about him. I can’t pretend to know how you feel or even how you should feel. But you knew enough to not go back, okay?” He nodded and sniffed, trying to push the emotion away from the situation. She moved her hands down to hold his tightly and squeezed them with every sentence to emphasize her point. “You are safe. And you are loved. Okay?”

He nodded, a watery smile forming on his face. She held his hands long enough for the tension in the room to shift to something else. She let go and turned to leave the room. “Do you want a drink or something.”

He nodded again, not sure he could trust his voice yet and followed her down another hall that lead to the large kitchen. The room was immaculate, spacious and clean but also felt homey and not sterile like most of the kitchens on Figure Eight. She got a couple of glasses from a nearby shelf and filled them with water from a filtered jug in the fridge. 

JJ sipped his water as he looked at the pictures stuck to the refrigerator door. There were a couple pictures of her parents, but most of the photos were of Kie. Childhood photos of her in a tutu, of her playing in the sand, of her holding up a turtle to the camera. His eyes fell on one photo, a recent one of her, John B, Pope and himself on the HMS Pogue. The photo had only been taken a few months ago after she had returned to the fold. They had had a perfect day of fishing and sailing, and it had been one of the best days of JJ’s life because all the people he loved were back in his life again. He looked at John B’s goofy smile in the photo and his heart nearly broke.

Kiara came to stand beside him and knew instantly which photo he was staring at. “I feel guilty.” She said softly.

He turned his head to look down at her. “Why?” He asked, he knew why he did but why did she?

“I have these moments where I forget that he’s gone. And then I remember, and I think what an asshole I am for forgetting him. For having any moment of happiness or contentment when they’re gone.” An angry frown was forming on her face as she spoke. JJ put his glass down on the counter and pulled her into a tight hug. He wrapped his arms around her head, and she wrapped hers around his torso.

“I get it. I feel like that too. But I think John B wouldn’t want us to be sad all the damn time. I know that sounds like a cop out or an excuse, but I know he and Sarah would want us to be okay at least some of the time.” She nodded her head against his chest when he finished. “We’re going to be okay. I have to believe that.”

He didn’t know what had made him do it, but he placed a kiss in the top of her curls and left his lips there to breath her in again. She squeezed him tighter and he took that to mean that it was okay and so they stayed like that in each other’s arms.

This was how Kiara’s parents had found them, arms wrapped tightly around the other. Her father had cleared his throat and they pulled away from each other faster than they necessarily needed to.

“Hey, how was dinner?” Kie asked, plastering a fake smile on her face. “You guys are home pretty early. How were the Parkers?”

“Their son fell off his bike, they took him to the emergency room for stitches, so we came home.” Her mother replied walking over and putting her bag down on the bench. She eyed them both suspiciously. “You’re here again JJ?”

Her tone wasn’t exactly accusatory, but it wasn’t welcoming either. JJ replied with a quick and polite. “Yes ma’am.”

“Kiara can we speak to you for a minute in the other room?” Her father asked looking between the two of them. “Excuse us a minute, JJ.”

JJ nodded and stepped back to let Kiara pass him. She said a quick, “I’ll be right back,” as she left.

Kiara followed her Dad back down the hall towards the front door. Her father stopped abruptly and turned to face his daughter.

“Are you dating JJ Maybank?” Her father asked but continued before Kiara could even reply. “I know you have been through a lot lately; I do. But look what hanging out with them has gotten you. A year ago, you wouldn’t have disappeared for days, or started fights or been an accessory to murder.”

“John B isn’t a murderer.” She interjected angrily. “I’m not dating JJ, but so what if I was Dad. It would be my choice. They are my friends.”

“Kiara you know where he comes from, you know what kind of person his father is.” Unfortunately, the hallway carried a lot of sound and JJ could hear everything Kie’s father was saying to her. He tried not to take it personally, a lot of what he said was kind of true. “We know he was arrested for destruction of property. He is a loose cannon, Sweetheart, and one of these days you will be too close when he goes off. For all we know he could have given you that bruise, I wouldn’t put it past you to lie to us.”

JJ had heard enough, he might have been a loose cannon, but he would never hurt Kie, not like how his father had hurt his mother before she left.

“You are way out of line, Dad.” Kiara said, anger rising in her. Her father looked over Kie’s shoulder and she followed his gaze to see JJ coming down the hall towards them.

“I may be a white trash, piece of shit from the Cut. But I would never. And I mean never in a million years lay a hand on her like that.” JJ tried to keep his hands by his side so as not to seem too aggressive towards Kiara’s father. “Do I regret all the shit that has happened in your daughter’s life since she has known me? Yes. And if I thought she would be happier or better off in your Kook world then I would tell her so. But we both know that she does what she wants because she is too damn stubborn for her own good. Now I think it’s time I leave. Thank you so much for the generous hospitality.”

Kiara’s father had the good sense to look a little bit ashamed as he moved to the side to let JJ through the front door.

“JJ!” Kiara called as his foot hit the first step off the porch. He turned and looked at her. “I have a closing shift tomorrow night.”

He pressed his lips into a hard line. “I’ll be there.” Was all he said before he turned and left. Kiara felt so cold and empty standing there watching him leave. She turned back to her parents and glared at them. They tried to reach out to her as she ran past them and straight up to her room.

…

Kiara had arrived at work to see JJ had beaten her there. She hadn’t spoken to her parents since yesterday but had to work this shift with her Dad. The bruise on her cheek had finally begun to fade and she was thankful for the make up her mother had bought her last Christmas.

JJ got out of the van and walked up to meet Kiara near the restaurant steps. “Your Dad’s inside so I thought I would wait out here for you. I can stay in the van and keep an eye out.”

“What? No, JJ that’s ridiculous. Come inside, I’ll get you some dinner.” She rolled her eyes and gestured for him to follow her. She knew it was going to be awkward with her Dad but she wanted to be able to have JJ close by while she worked so it would defeat the purpose of having him sit in the van outside during her shift.

Kiara made it clear that she was there to work and didn’t want to talk about the confrontation at their house the evening before. Half an hour into her shift Pope had come in and sat next to JJ at one of the small tables near the front entrance. 

Pope looked at his friend and noticed the bouncing of his leg and the ways his eyes were darting around the room. “How are you going, man?” 

“Yeah, good. No sign of any trouble yet.” JJ said, waves of anxiety rolled off him as he chewed on one of his thumb nails. He seemed to visibly relax, and Pope followed his gaze to see Kiara coming towards them from the kitchen.

She placed a bowl of the soup-of-the-day down in front of JJ and then turned to Pope. “Hey, did you want anything for dinner?” As she spoke to Pope, she rested one of her hands on JJ’s shoulder and the bouncing in his leg stilled. 

Pope looked between his two closest friends. Something felt different, they had all been close but never to the point that he had felt he was intruding on some private moment. He took his gaze from her hand on JJ’s shoulder and looked up at her face. He kept his voice cool, after all he had no right to decide where Kie placed her affection. “No, Mom’s got food at home, I just came down to ask how it went last night.”

JJ raised an expressive eyebrow and smirked into his bowl of soup before Kie answered. “It went fine. The transfer went through so we have the money.” She kept her voice low. “I can go to the bank tomorrow to get the cash out and then we will be ready.”

“About that.” Pope answered. “The stipulation of my new scholarship interview was that we are meeting at their offices which is on the mainland. Mom said it will have to be an overnight trip, so she is going with me. It’s on Friday, I won’t be able to go with you for the handoff.”

“Fine by me.” JJ said, resting his spoon in his almost empty bowl. “I didn’t plan for either of you to come anyway.”

“Wait, what?” Kiara was confused, she thought they had been in this together. “I’m not letting you go by yourself; they will kill you.”

JJ turned around in his chair to face Kie. “Barry wants his money. I will have his money. I will give it to him and then I will go.” He reached up to place his hand on her elbow and Pope couldn’t help the disappointed feeling that filled him. “Rafe will follow Barry’s lead and if you aren’t there, then that’s one more variable we don’t have to worry about.”

JJ dropped his hand and turned to wipe his finger around the inside of his bowl to get the last remnants of his meal. He looked up at his friend, sitting across from him. “You don’t need anymore distractions. We have this handled. You are getting a second chance, don’t waste it.”

Kiara wanted to argue with him, but she had already been standing at the table too long and had to leave to tend to other customers. Pope watched as JJ licked his fingers clean. He wondered if JJ had been the reason Kiara had turned him down. He didn’t know how he felt about that. Their lives had changed so much and if he was able to make up for his last scholarship interview then he had a real shot at making his college dreams come true. He knew Kiara had wanted to travel the world, helping communities in need but he didn’t know what JJ’s plans were for after high school. He didn’t like the idea of JJ staying here by himself but honestly didn’t know what other options he had. He decided to put it out of his head, they were staying close by to protect each other and he couldn’t fault them for getting closer. He hadn’t been around but now when he saw them, he was beginning to feel like an unwelcome third wheel.

…

Rafe didn’t know when it had started but he was stalking Kiara. He knew he couldn’t stay too long outside of her parent’s restaurant; his supply was running low and at the moment that was the only reason Barry was still useful to him.

He had brought his gun with him this time and had kept it in the glovebox. He had seen Pope leave and almost got out of his car to pay him back for the last time they met. But he left it alone. Pope wasn’t a problem anymore, Rafe had noticed the distance he had put between himself and his friends. JJ was the one that had barely left her side. He couldn’t even get her alone to talk to her. Kiara thought she was so much better than him because she lowered herself to hang with those losers. Rafe thought that if he just showed her what she could have in Figure Eight, she would let those animals die alone on the cut.

His phone buzzed with another text form his Dad asking where he was. He thought his father would have been more appreciative for everything he had done for him, but the great Ward Cameron had tightened the leash more than ever. He was a grown man and he had saved his father’s life, the least he could do was let him spend his nights however he wanted.

He sent a quick text saying Out. Be home later. He wanted another fix, so he started the car and left to go to Barry’s, he decided tonight was not the night to make his point with Kiara clear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Pope I do but for the stories sake and to keep it focused on JJ and Kie I had to have an excuse for him to be out of the way when the action happens. 
> 
> I needed to check in with Rafe again because I think it is important to get a glimpse of his mental state. 
> 
> The next chapter might take a little longer to come out because I won't have much time tomorrow to write. Also action chapters are hard to write.
> 
> Thanks again for all the comments, kudos and bookmarks.
> 
> MissyXoxo


	5. Don't Say It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They have the money now and a meeting has been set. Will everything go the way they want it to?
> 
> No Beta, all mistakes are my own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little heads up this isn't the action chapter I had hoped to release sorry.
> 
> Thanks for being patient had to babysit my nephews and they left me to tired to write.
> 
> Thank you for all the comments, kudos and bookmarks!!

Kiara tapped her fingers nervously on the desk. The bank manager had been kind enough and luckily, they had enough cash in branch to give to her, but she still felt nervous. She had decided to dress up a bit to play the role of Kook teenager taking out a stack of cash to buy a boat with friends. 

JJ decided to wait outside in the Pogue Mobile. He didn’t exactly have the name brand accessories to pull off Kook douchebag. His leg had been bouncing non-stop since Kiara had walked into the bank, not that he doubted she would get the money. He knew she could play her part well but wish she didn’t have to. If her parents ever found out about the money, before he had a chance to pay it all back of course, he would never forgive himself for putting her in that position.

He decided he needed a smoke and got out of the van to lean against its side in the warm early afternoon sun. He finished his smoke and put it out on his shoe before tossing it in the trashcan nearby.

“Using an actual garbage can? That’s very sexy, you know?” Kiara joked as she headed towards him from the bank entrance. A goofy grin spread across his face.

“Yeah some chick told me that we only have one planet and blah blah blah.” JJ continued the banter, feeling a sense of the old rhythm returning. Kiara moved to lean against the van with him. “So how did the heist go? Did you take them for all they’re worth?”

She laughed. “Not even close but we got what we needed.” She looked up at him. “This is all going to work out, right?”

He could see the worry begin to chase her smile away. “Easy, peazy.” 

She pushed off the van and fully faced him, her voice now grim. “I’m serious JJ. Everything has just been too easy. I just feel like the other shoe is going to drop and everything is going to go to shit.”

He lifted his hand to rest on her face, because apparently, they were able to this now and it felt like he had always done it. “Nothing about our lives recently has been easy. We have caught a couple of lucky breaks in the middle of a shitshow. We will take all the luck we can get.”

She closed her eyes and pressed her cheek further into the warmth of his palm. When she opened her eyes again, she looked deep into his, and a burst of electricity filled her. She thought he could feel it too as his breathing became faster. 

“JJ. What are we doing?” She asked in a soft breathy voice, not wanting to break the tension but also feeling the need to be direct.

“Robbing the rich to give to poor drug dealers so they don’t kill us?” He joked, wanting to be less direct. He did want to know what this feeling was though. The one he felt when he looked at her or touched her but was afraid that talking about it would mean it would end.

“I’m talking about this.” She gestured between the two of them. “Whatever this is between us.”

He pursed his lips and gently grabbed her hand to hold by their sides. “Don’t. Just let it be. Don’t end it not yet.”

He was almost pleading with her and she looked away to avoid seeing the sadness in his eyes. Was I trying to end it? She thought to herself. The charge she felt when their hands touched or when she was so close, she could hear his heartbeat was unlike anything she had ever felt before. It was the happiest and most content she had ever felt in her life. 

She had looked back up at him but before she had been able to say any of that, she froze in her tracks. She looked over his shoulder and could see Rafe walking out from behind the back of the van.

Her eyes filled with fear and JJ turned to see what had spooked her and ended their intense moment. When JJ saw him standing there with a self-satisfied grin on his face a chill ran through him. He instinctively moved his body to block Kie, using one arm to reach behind him and hold onto her. 

She grabbed the hand offered behind his back and leaned in close behind him. She didn’t like feeling weak but the memory of Rafe’s hands on her still terrified her. 

“I’m sorry was I interrupting something?” Rafe still spoke with the smile on his face but it didn’t reach his eyes. He ignored JJ and tilted his head to peer at Kiara. “Kie, so good to see you. You look fantastic.”

JJ shifted slightly to keep Kiara out of view. “It’s over Rafe. Tell Barry I have his money.”

Rafe looked surprised. “Resourceful little cockroach, aren’t you?” His fake smile now dropped to address JJ. He then did a dramatic gesture behind him. “Then by all means let’s go. Ladies first?”

JJ tensed again as he felt Kiara squeeze his arm. “I don’t have it all on me right now. Tell Barry I can be there this afternoon with all of it. But I come alone.”

Rage flickered on Rafe’s face but was gone almost as quick as it had appeared. He seemed to think for a minute before nodding. “Fine. 4 o’clock. Don’t be late.”

He had turned to walk away but stopped himself. “Oh, and JJ, you know what will happen if you’re short or you bring any weapons with you right?” He made eye contact with Kie as he finished his sentence.

Kie had been quiet during this exchange but was glad her voice was steady when she replied. “He understands.”

JJ looked back over his shoulder to see the defiant stare she was giving their dangerous enemy. He looked back at Rafe, the anger and disgust almost becoming too much.

“Good.” Rafe said, the cheery façade had returned. “Four o’clock, Pogue. Don’t be late.”

They watched him walk across the road and get into a midsized SUV and drive away before either of them even moved. JJ spun around to face Kie, he put a hand on her shoulder and the other on her face. “Are you alright?”

“I’m okay.” She replied firmly. He searched her eyes trying to see if it was the truth. “I mean it this time.”

The charge between them began to build again and he dropped his hand from her face. He didn’t want to have that conversation right now. “The rest of the money is at The Chateau. Come on.” 

Her face felt cold in the absence of his touch. There was so much they needed to talk about, but Kiara only paused for a moment before getting in the van.

…

They got back to the Chateau just before 3pm, giving them just over an hour to gather all the money and for JJ to deliver it to a dangerous drug dealer and his psychotic new friend. JJ was tense all the way back from the bank and jumped out of the van as soon as he cut the engine.

Kiara watched JJ rush into the beach shack and followed him in. He was moving from room to room collecting all the money they had stashed over the house. He went into John B’s room and found a small duffle bag to put the $25,000 in. He had placed a few piles of bills on the table and began counting before looking up at Kie. He reached his hand out for her bag and she pulled out the envelope from the bank containing the last $7000 they needed. He took it as well and laid it all on the table. 

“It’s all here.” He said, almost to himself, as he started putting the piles into the duffle bag. “It’s all going to be okay.”

Again, Kie didn’t know if he was talking to her or himself. He put his hands on the back of the chair in front of him and his knuckles instantly turned white. She could see how scared he was. She walked up behind him and put her arms around his waist. She rested her head between his shoulder blades, and he put his hands over hers and held them tight. 

“Kie.” He said her name softly, but she just shook her head against his back. “I have to go.”

“Not yet you don’t.” He turned around in her arms as she spoke, she didn’t unlock her wrists, so he was still in her tight embrace. “JJ.”

He put his arms around her and held her tight. She pulled her head back and looked into his eyes. Tears had started to fall from hers and he used his thumb to wipe them from her face. Again, the charge was building and for once she didn’t question it. She closed the gap between them and pressed her lips to his. 

JJ hesitated at first but not for long. He reached up putting his hands in her hair and deepened the kiss. The kiss was soft but intense and left them both slightly breathless when they pulled apart. A wide smile spread across Kiara’s face and JJ couldn’t help but smile back. They just stared at each other for a moment, enjoying the electricity of the moment.

But they didn’t have the luxury of finding out where this went next. JJ placed one of her curls behind her ear and return the palm to her face. When he spoke, his voice was serious but calm. “After I leave, if you don’t hear from me after 2 hours you call the cops and tell them everything. Understand?”

Kie was confused. “You said everything was going to be okay.”

“I’m not an idiot Kiara. I’m not going on a play date. There is a chance this doesn’t end well for me and I won’t let Rafe get away with murder twice.”

She took a deep shaky breath and leaned her head back onto his chest. He squeezed her tight until she pulled back and looked up at him. “I understand, 2 hours and then I call Shoup.”

“Thank you.” He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead and felt her shudder in his arms. “I should go, I can’t be late.”

“Wait!” Kiara called as he left her arms and grabbed the bag from the table. This was all happening too soon. “This thing between us. There is so much I want to say. And I need to say it now in case something happens.”

He had stopped when she had asked him to wait but he hadn’t looked up at her. He took a deep breath before he dropped the bag back on the table and crossed the room in a few strides. He grabbed her face in his hands and hesitated a second before pressing his lips to hers. This kiss was more frenzied and rushed, both trying to hold on to that invisible tether that had been holding them together for the past week. JJ pulled away fast, leaving Kiara’s hands to fall from where they had been resting on his chest. He picked up the bag again and he looked back at her.

“And that is exactly why you can’t say it now.” He looked down at his hands for a moment before looking back at her. His eyes started to glisten with unshed tears. “Either it’s only been about the excitement of it all and it won’t mean anything in a couple of days or… Or that was a goodbye kiss. Either way if something bad does happen I don’t want to hear it. I don’t want the last thing you say to me to break my heart.” He paused again looking at her sadly. “And you’re a heartbreaker Kiara Carrera, you always have been.”

She didn’t know what to say and finally settled on. “Be careful.”

He gave her a mischievous JJ smile and said. “Always.” Before grabbing the keys for the van by the door and leaving.

Kie stood there for almost a minute listening to him go before the engine of the Pogue Mobile disappeared completely and she had to grab the kitchen sink to stop herself from falling to the ground.

…

JJ tried to psych himself up in the car by blasting some old school pop punk song and singing out as loud as he could. The image of Kie standing in the kitchen with tears in her eyes almost made him go back. He almost made the decision to turn around a hundred times. To tell her he loved her and that they should take the money and run. Another driveway appeared on the right and it was one more chance for JJ turn around. But he didn’t. He didn’t know how far Barry would go to get his money and he didn’t know if that would stop Rafe. But most importantly he couldn’t do that to Pope, he had lost John B too, he wouldn’t make him come home from his interview to find two more friends gone. There was also the chance that Kie would say no, he was sure she would want to stay to finish school. He couldn’t just take her parents money either, he had to pay it back, he wasn’t going to be the leech they though him to be.

JJ turned the radio down as he turned into the small dirt road that lead to Barry’s small home. He looked at the clock as he pulled the van to a stop not far from the house. 3:48pm, he had made it with ten minutes to spare. It was the first time JJ had been early for anything in his life.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before grabbing the duffle full of money and exiting the van. He could hear noises form the house, but it still felt eerily quiet. He walked up to the door on the side of the shabby looking building. Do I knock? He thought to himself. He did a quick knock on the door frame and waited but there was no reply. He finally figured that the sounds he could hear was the TV turned up way too loud and decided to let himself in.

“Barry?” He called as he walked into a small kitchen and dining area. He headed towards the living room. “It’s JJ, I got your money man. We can be square now. I’m sorry I ever took it.”  
He walked into the room with the TV, something felt immediately off. He saw Barry slumped in an old armchair but Rafe was nowhere to be seen. “Barry?” 

He called his name again and still no answer. He swallowed hard and walked slowly around the other side of the chair. JJ’s breathing started coming faster. Barry had a bullet hole in his head. JJ’s head snapped up and he looked around the space expecting the gunman to come from the shadows at any minute. In an instant all of JJ’s worst nightmares had come true, Rafe had killed Barry and now he had no one to hold him back from doing what he really wanted to do.

“Kie!” He said out loud and that spurned him into action. The speed in which he moved through the house made him trip slightly but he let nothing hold him back as he sprinted for the van. He had left his phone in the car when he had gone inside the house but grabbed it now. He clicked on her picture in his recent calls and held the phone with his shoulder as he started the van.

“Come on, Kie. Answer your phone. Please Kie. Please.” He let out a half sob when her phone went to voicemail. He sped away from the house and tore back onto the back road that lead to the other side of the cut and to the Chateau. He called her again and it rang out before going to her voicemail for a second time. He slammed the hand holding the phone down onto the steering wheel. He knew that if something had happened to her, he would never forgive himself and he would, no matter what it took, kill Rafe Cameron.

…

Kiara had stood there relying on the countertop to keep her steady for almost 5 minutes before pulling herself off. She had been crying and knew she would be all puffy eyes and snot. She headed to the bathroom to splash water on her face. She looked at herself in the mirror but saw a much different picture than the one that had haunted her after that night in the Wreck.

The bruise had almost completely faded, and the cut had scabbed over and started to heal. But the light hadn’t dulled from her eyes and her lips were red with the reminder of her kisses with JJ. She brushed a finger over her them and smiled, thinking about the feeling of his lips on hers. She had kissed him first; she had always had a little thing for JJ. He was so impulsive and chaotic, but he was also funny and one of her favorite people in the whole world. When she had kissed Pope, it had been for the boy he was before their lives had been turned upside down. When she kissed JJ, it was for the man he could be, the one who had parked outside her house because he knew she would be terrified and might need him. She didn’t know when JJ had started to anticipate her moves, to be there just when she thought she might need him.

Kiara heard a small noise from outside. She hopingly and stupidly believed it to be JJ back for some reason. She opened the bathroom door and left the small hallway with a ridiculously wide grin on her face.

“You’re back? -” She said before her entire body locked up. Of course, it wasn’t JJ, she wasn’t going to be that lucky. Rafe stood in the doorway, taller than she remembered. She looked down at his hand holding a gun and then back up to his face. “Rafe. Please.”

The exit to the porch was to the right but she didn’t know if she would make it if he fired. She decided she needed to play nice and keep him calm this time.

“Maybe we should sit. You said you wanted to talk right?” She gestured towards the dining table between them.

He furrowed his brow and cocked his head to the side. “Do you think I’m stupid?” He took a step towards her and she instinctively took one back. He raised his gun. “Stop. I asked you a question?”

“Do I think you’re stupid?” She answered trying like hell to stall for JJ to realize Rafe isn’t at Barry’s house. “Of course not, Rafe.” 

She smiled as best she could, trying to be reassuring. She looked at the gun and then back to his face. “Rafe put the gun down, please. It’s starting to scare me and we’re just trying to talk here, right?”

He squinted at her before dropping the arm holding the gun. “You’re right. We are just two people having a conversation.” He took the last few steps towards her and it took all her strength not to run. He was now standing about two feet from her. “What should we talk about then?”

She smiled again, trying to push her fears far away. “I don’t mind. Up to you.” 

His gaze dropped to scan down her body and then back up to her face. “JJ.”

Her smile faltered. “What- what about him?”

He took another step forward and this time she did step back but felt her back hit a wall. He leaned forward to rest one hand on the wall beside her head. “What does he have that I don’t? What is it that makes you lower yourself for that bottom feeding piece of shit?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She lied, not very convincingly. “JJ is one of my friends.”

He laughed in her face. “You kiss all your friends like that?”

She looked back into the room to where she and JJ had been standing earlier and then looked to the windows that would have shown them. “Were you watching us?” She looked back at him now with disgust but tried to mask it when she saw the anger in his face.

He ignored her question. He kept one hand on the wall and lifted the one with the gun in it to her face. He used the barrel to caress the side of her face. “I know what he sees in you. What everyone sees. That effortless beauty, that carefree spirit.”

Her phone rang from inside her handbag where she had dropped it on the other side of the table. She looked towards where the sound was coming from, a lifeline so close but still out of reach. 

“I wonder who that could be?” He smiled as she turned her head to look back at him. “Guess he finally got to Barry’s and found the surprise I left him.” He put the gun to her head and made the sound of a gunshot. 

She flinched hard at the sound and he laughed. Kiara looked down and for the first time noticed the tiny droplets of blood on his shirt. He smiled again. “Bye Barry.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A cliffhanger!! I know I am so sorry!!! This was supposed to be the big showdown chapter but it ended up getting away from me a bit and then it ended up being the longest chapter so far. 
> 
> I am hoping to not make you wait too long for the next chapter.
> 
> Also yeah I killed Barry. I need Rafe to go full crazy, he killed again, there is nothing holding him back. I don't know how far I want Rafe to go next chapter, don't want to make it too dark. And I don't want Kie to get hurt too bad.
> 
> Thanks again!!  
> MissyXoxo


	6. The Chateau

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A violent confrontation at The Chateau.
> 
> TRIGGER WARNINGS! Please read the tags for the story.  
> This chapter contains graphic depictions of violence and implied/reference rape/noncon. 
> 
> No beta so all the mistakes are mine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay you guys begged for it!! I guess the cliffhanger at the end of the last chapter had been a little cruel. 
> 
> I was really struggling to write this chapter so sorry if it sounds a bit disjointed or contrived in some parts. 
> 
> Honestly all the comments have been so helpful in inspiring me to keep going. They bring a smile to my face every time.

Kiara couldn’t breathe. Rafe had killed Barry and although she didn’t have any love lost for the violent drug dealer, she hadn’t wanted anyone to die. Rafe had now murdered two people, and he didn’t seem to need to hide that fact from her. He was going to kill her too, she knew it.

Tears ran down her cheeks and Rafe laughed again. “Tell me you’re not crying over Barry? The guy was a drug dealer, Kie.”

Kiara thought about how Rafe was a frequent customer of Barry’s and a murderer, but he drew the line at dealing drugs. She looked away again as her phone rang for a third time. 

Rafe clenched his fist in frustration. “Can’t we just have a private moment without JJ fucking interrupting us?” He grabbed her arm, hard enough for her to cry out and pulled her along with him. He picked up her bag from the floor and retrieved the phone. He shoved it at her. “Answer it on loudspeaker and be nice.”

Kiara took the phone from him and swiped the answer button under the picture of JJ standing on the edge of the HMS Pogue in a superhero pose. “JJ.”

JJ had been driving faster than he ever had in his life, if the cops saw him then he would just lead them all back to where they could be helpful. He let out a harsh breath. “Oh my god, Kie. Barry’s dead. Rafe killed him. Is he there?”

Kiara looked up at the man in question, who nodded. Her voice was shaky as she answered. “Yes, he’s here. He has a gun.”

The hand that wasn’t holding the phone gripped the steering wheel tighter. “Rafe? I guess that means this money is all yours now. There is no need to hurt her, I can bring it to you right now.”

Bargaining. JJ didn’t have any other options right now. Rafe smiled and then took the phone back from Kiara. “That money is evidence. It’s motive for Barry’s murder. I can assume you are on your way JJ. It’s a shame you’re going to be too late.”  
Kiara tried to pull back out of his grip, but he only squeezed tighter. JJ was now yelling through the phone. “DON’T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HER, RAFE!”

Rafe just laughed again and the sound made Kiara shiver. He lifted the phone closer to his face. “I got away with murder once thanks to a Pogue, let’s see if I can make it a hat trick.” 

JJ changed tactic. “Kie! Hold on, I am coming. Kie?”

Before Kiara could answer him Rafe looked down at the phone and said. “Bye JJ.” He ended the call and then threw the phone across the room. 

Kiara knew she had to do something. She turned and kicked him as hard as she could in his groin. He released her arm and dropped to his knees. She used this opportunity to punch him as hard as she could in the face and then she turned to run. She was able to make it a few steps before his long arm reached out and pulled her ankle out from under her. She fell hard and screamed out when a pain shot through the wrist, she had used to break her fall with. Before she had time to process that pain any further a hand was pulling her back and then flipping her over onto her back.

He was on top of her in less than a second. Rafe tore at the collar of her shirt before it ripped fully to expose the bikini top underneath. She tried to kick him again but couldn’t lift her legs with his body weight holding her down.

He held her shoulders firmly and leaned down to press his lips against hers. She moved her head around as much as possible. “Rafe. No! Please stop!”

He removed one the hands from her shoulders and gripped her hair in a tight fist. “You stupid fucking bitch. You think you’re better than me? I’ll get what I’m owed.” He spat the last words in her face and then slammed her head into the hardwood floor.

The hit left her dazed and Kiara hadn’t noticed that his hands were gone until she heard the sound of a zipper. She opened her eyes, not sure how long they had been closed and looked up at him. His hair was matted on his forehead with sweat and his whole body seemed to vibrate with a frenzied and violent energy. He was undoing his belt when she half pulled herself up and ran her nails all down his face. He screamed out in pain and she leaned forward once more to punch him in crotch. Again, he buckled with the pain and she twisted her whole body to make enough space to crawl out from under him. She pulled herself up and grabbed an empty beer bottle on the table nearby and smashed it over his head. The keys to the HMS Pogue were on a hook near the door to the porch and she grabbed them before running outside. 

Rafe groaned and put a hand to the spot on his head where she had hit him with the bottle. His hand came away bloody and the rage in him boiled further. He looked around and saw the gun he had dropped before. He stumbled over to pick it up before heading in the direction he saw her go.

Kiara ran as fast as she could towards the dock. She had looked behind her when she had gotten outside the house, but she hadn’t seen him yet. She sped down the dock and got to the edge of the boat before a gunshot rang out. She ducked her head, not sure where he had been aiming. She turned around and saw him walking towards her. He had the gun aimed into the air as he stepped onto the edge of the dock.

One more minute, she thought. That was all she had needed to untie the boat and then get away. She had gone for the boat because she knew she wouldn’t have been able to outrun him on foot. She had taken a gamble and had lost. He sauntered towards her, feeling confident that she was finally trapped. 

“Rafe please, you don’t have to do this.” She begged, putting her hands up in a show of surrender. She had one last card to play. “Rafe, please. What would Sarah think? She was my friend; she wouldn’t want you to hurt me.”

He had almost reached her now at the end of the dock. He had brought his arm down and now aimed the gun at Kiara. “Yeah, well she’s dead now. So, it doesn’t really matter what she would want. Does it?”

He looked at the boat keys still clenched in her hand and decided he wasn’t going to let her have anymore chance of escape. He turned the gun from her and fired. He had shot a hole through the back of the boat and the last bit of hope left Kiara feeling empty. 

She looked at the boat and all the memories of her friends on it rushed to her mind. She thought of lazy afternoons all summer that they had lounged on its deck. She thought of John B, fishing off the side and of Pope laying back and talking about some random scientific fact until one of them had pushed him off the edge. And as she watched the water start to flow into the hole and sink their memories she thought of JJ. 

JJ had pulled over just before the Chateau came into view. Rafe knew he was coming but he didn’t want to announce his arrival. He had heard a gunshot and started running towards the house in the edge of the tree line. He didn’t have time to question whether Kie was already dead and he ran for the house. He got inside and looked at the room. There was a chair tipped over, shattered glass and drops of blood on the floor. He carefully walked over the broken glass and found Kiara’s torn shirt sitting in the mess. He heard another gunshot and looked out he window to see Rafe and Kiara standing at the end of the dock.

Kiara had wondered how far away JJ was and if she would see him again before Rafe killed her. She looked at Rafe. “Rafe, please.”

He lifted the hand with the gun and hit her across the face. She fell to her knees as the pain exploded in her temple. She felt dizzy and leaned forward. Her right wrist felt too weak to put any pressure on and she cradled it to her chest. She looked up at Rafe who was now standing over her and she felt warm blood slide down her face.

He raised the gun, aligning it with her head. “You know it didn’t have to end like this. John B and that god damn treasure hunt. It destroyed my family.”

She scowled at him. “You really think so? Your Dad killed Big John. Your Dad killed those thugs he sent to threaten John B. YOUR Dad stole the gold and tried to run with Sarah. John B didn’t destroy your family. Your Dad did.”

She was determined not to let her last moments be cowering under his gaze. She held a defiant glare and looked him in the eyes.

He growled and put the barrel of the gun against her forehead. She sucked in ragged breath but held her gaze. She was sure this was her last moment on this Earth before she heard a noise behind them.

“RAFE!” JJ yelled as he ran to the dock. He had seen Kiara on her knees with a gun to her head and had thought to hell with a sneak attack. The dock was too exposed anyway for a stealthier entrance and he didn’t have a second to waste with Rafe poised to fire at any minute. 

Rafe spun around and fired twice. The first shot had missed JJ but the second one hadn’t. He felt the pain explode in his shoulder and he almost dropped to the ground. He stumbled a few more steps before the pain and shock hit him and he did fall to the ground.

“JJ!” Kiara called out. Rafe turned around and kicked her hard in the ribs and she went from kneeling to laying on her side on the old wood of the dock. She sucked in a couple breaths and her chest flared in pain. 

JJ looked up and saw Kie laying down struggling to take in breaths. Rafe continued towards him and the pain in shoulder made it almost impossible to stand. 

Kiara had opened her eyes and saw Rafe striding towards where JJ was kneeling, blood pouring from the bullet wound in his shoulder. She sucked in another harsh breath and pulled herself to her feet. She moved as fast as she could and jumped on Rafe’s back. She dug her nails into his face, and he grabbed at her wrist to stop the attack. 

JJ knew this was their only chance and propelled himself forward. He grabbed the hand with the gun and pushed it into the air just as Rafe fired it again. JJ kicked out at Rafe’s knee and twisted the wrist so that he dropped the gun. Rafe grabbed at Kie’s injured wrist and was able to throw her off when her grip loosened. 

Her back hit the ground hard and it left her winded again. JJ launched a punch at Rafe’s jaw, but his strength was waning from the bullet wound and the hit connected with less force. Rafe swung back immediately landing the hit perfectly on JJ’s left eye. Rafe hit again and JJ spat out a mouth full of blood after his opponent pulled back. JJ struck out again this time hitting Rafe square in the throat.

Rafe choked and took a step back but that wasn’t enough time for JJ to gather his strength again. Rafe charged at him, tackling him to the ground. He put his hands around JJ’s neck and squeezed.

He peered down at the boy struggling in his hands and snarled. “You stupid fucking Pogues. You thought you would win? I win.” He pulled JJ’s head up slightly before slamming it back into the ground. He kept slamming and squeezing as he yelled. “I WIN! Not you!”

JJ was clawing at the hands around his throat, he reached up, but his arms were shorter than Rafe’s and he was left scratching at his just short of the taller man’s shoulders. His vision started to go dark as he struggled for air. Rafe’s face was beginning to dim in front of him when he heard another gunshot. 

Kiara had seen Rafe choking the life from the boy she loved and had reached for the gun where it had landed near the edge of the dock. She had fired near Rafe as a warning shot. He had released his grip on JJ and turned sharply. He stood up and glared at Kiara.

“Don’t move Rafe. I will shoot you if I have to.” Kiara cried, holding the gun up with two hands. She held the cool metal shakily and aimed it at Rafe’s chest. He took a step towards her and she shouted again. “STOP! Not another step!”

JJ coughed as the air began to refill his lungs. He looked up at Kie and saw the scared but defiant look in her eyes as she held the gun and begged for Rafe to stop moving.

Rafe decided he wasn’t going to let that bitch win and advanced on her. The look in his eyes and the speed at which he tried to reach her was enough for Kiara to make her decision. She fired the gun and it hit Rafe in the center of his chest. 

Kiara sucked in a deep breath, shocked with what she had just done. Rafe looked down at his chest and pushed his hands against the wound now blossoming with blood. He took a few shaky steps towards her and Kiara scurried backwards not bothering to raise the gun this time. Rafe finally fell and was still.

Kiara started gasping in shock. JJ struggled to his feet and walked over to Rafe’s body. He stood there above him for a second before noticing the pool of blood that had now begun to spread on the old wood. Satisfied that Rafe was no longer a threat he staggered over to where Kiara was still standing.

“Kie?” He approached her slowly because she was in shock and was still holding the gun. “Kie.”

She looked from Rafe’s body to JJ’s face. He looked down at her hand and she followed his gaze. She looked almost surprised to find the gun still grasped in her hand. She took a few steps to the right and place the gun on top of the railing surrounding the sheltered part of the dock. She turned back to him and they both collapsed as they met. JJ had his arms around her and, like she had done so many times this week, she grabbed on to the front of his shirt to hold him close. 

She sobbed into his chest and he ran his hand soothingly down her back. They could hear police sirens now but made no effort to move. JJ looked over at the body that had once been just a rich asshole jock and had become someone who had almost taken both their lives. In the last month of summer, the sun didn’t set until well after 8pm. It was hard to imagine something so dark and violent had happened in the glow of the late summer sun. They sat there entwined as the sirens got louder and the lights began to reflect off the trees and water around them.

JJ let the tears fall as he held the sobbing girl in his arms. He didn’t know when he had started but he was rocking them in a soothing motion. He looked over as people started climbing out of the cop cars. He put his head in her hair and whispered, his voice still coarse after being choked. “It’s going to be okay now. It’s over. It’s over.”

He raised his head again as he heard the first of the officers reach the dock. He saw the former deputy, Shoupe in the lead. “We’re not armed.” He said as loud as his injured vocal cords would allow him.

Shoupe lowered his service weapon. “JJ? We had multiple reports of gunfire in the area.” He walked up to where Rafe was and leaned down to confirm his suspicions. He looked over at the two kids in each other’s arms and turned to one of the deputy’s behind him. “Call a bus.”

JJ hadn’t responded when Shoupe had said his name, instead he stared out at the water feeling all the adrenaline starting to leave his body. Kiara was still panting, each intake of air hurting her ribs, but she couldn’t seem to catch her breath.

Shoupe holstered his gun and approached to two teenagers. “Kiara?” He asked this time and she raised her head from JJ’s chest. He could see the blood drying on her face where it had flowed from a deep head wound. “Are you two okay?”

Kiara seemed to think about it for a second and her senses returned to her. “JJ was shot.” It had apparently been holding onto her that had been keeping JJ upright and when she moved, he fell back.

“I need a medical kit!” Shoupe yelled over his shoulder and dropped to his knees to the dock. “JJ? Can you hear me?”

JJ had felt Kiara pull away and gravity had pulled him down. He felt so tired, but he turned to look at the officer crouching near his head. Shoupe leaned forward and pressed a hand to the hole in JJ’s shoulder that had steadily been leaking blood. JJ looked into his eyes and groaned as pain filled him. “He was going to kill us. I tired to get back before he hurt her.”

“What happened to Rafe?” Shoupe asked, looking at JJ struggle with the pain he was feeling.

“I killed him.” Kiara said softly. Shoupe looked up at her but she was looking only at JJ. He looked her over and saw the way she was holding her arm near her stomach and suspected it was probably broken. He noticed the large bruise under her left rib and the trail of smaller bruises up the lengths of both arms. Kiara seemed to notice his gaze tried to cover herself with her other arm. 

At that moment, a female officer came up and dropped a med kit next to Shoupe and then draped a blanket from the cruiser over the young teenagers’ shoulders. She told her Sheriff that the ambulance was not too far away now.

Shoupe pulled gauze from the first aid kit and pressed it down on JJ’s wound. He looked back over his shoulder as one of the other officers placed a sheet over the body of the son of the most powerful man in town. He had no doubt his death had been self-defense or justifiable homicide, but he needed everything to be by the books. “Get the coroner and crime scene techs to come out here.”

Kiara crouched down by JJ’s side and grabbed his hand. She squeezed it comfortingly, but he didn’t have the energy to squeeze back. He looked at her lovingly but was unable to keep the misery from his voice. “I’m sorry it took me so long to get back.”

“It’s okay, you got here in time. And then he shot you.” She spoke with a lot of sadness and regret in her voice as she looked down at the Shoupe’s bloody hands still holding firm to the wound. She looked up to meet the police officer’s eyes. “He killed Barry.”

Kiara didn’t remember the drug dealers last name but Shoupe didn’t need it, he was familiar with the dealer and had suspected for a long time the Cameron boy’s involvement in that activity.

The paramedics had arrived now and took over care of JJ and Kiara. The boy had been placed on a stretcher and was wheeled into the back of a waiting ambulance. 

“Wait!” Kiara called as the ambulance doors were being closed. “I’m going with him.” She moved away from the officer that had been steering her towards one of the police cruisers. She climbed up carefully into the back with the assistance of one of the paramedics and took a seat on the bench near JJ’s feet.

He was stable now that the bleeding had stopped but he had lost a lot of it and still needed to have the bullet removed. The paramedic in the back worked to adjust a bag of fluids for JJ. Kiara looked out the back of the ambulance window at the Chateau. The police lights flashed against the building and she saw the coroner van pull up out the front. 

She was glad he was dead but still looked down at her hands in disbelief, her hands that had taken a life. She had killed Rafe Cameron.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bye Rafe, you bitch. I don't think it would happen like this in the show because I think they need to have another confrontation with Rafe and John B but yeah Kiara killed him.
> 
> I think the next chapter might be the end of this story. Probably just going to be a lot of angsty feelings stuff.
> 
> I would like to write more stories in the future but unsure if I want it to be in this universe I've created or reset it back to the end of season 1. 
> 
> Thanks again to all the wonderful comments, kudos and bookmarks!!!
> 
> MissyXoxo


	7. Being Okay

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night after the showdown at the Chateau. 
> 
> No Beta so all the mistakes are mine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you can see I have changed the title of this work (again) to Bruises and Broken Bones which will now be Part One of an upcoming The End of Summer series.
> 
> Sorry this chapter is a little shorter than the rest, there was only so many times I could say the same things.
> 
> Thank you for all the kind comments, kudos and everything, You guys are seriously amazing.

JJ knew this feeling well, the feeling of waking up sore after a run in with his dad. He took a deep breath mentally checking himself for injuries and right on time, a dull pain throbbed in his shoulder. Right, he had been shot. He thought of Kiara and his eyes snapped open. And almost as if he had manifested her with his mind, she was there. He was lying in a hospital bed, monitors and tubes all around him. He looked down at his chest and saw the edges of a bandage wrapped around his left shoulder and upper torso, underneath an ugly hospital gown. He looked over at Kie and noticed she was wearing a matching hospital gown but had a fluffy purple robe draped over her shoulders. He could see her right arm was in a sling and she had a bandage around her head.

She had only been resting her eyes a minute and seemed to sense that he was now awake. She opened her eyes and saw he was already staring at her. She smiled warmly and reached out her good hand. “You’re awake.”

He took her hand in is without question and tried to smile back at her. “Shouldn’t you be in your own hospital bed somewhere?”

“I didn’t want you to wake up alone.” She stated and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “You slept for almost 14 hours. I guess you needed it.”

She tried to laugh but those hours he was out had scared her to death. He stretched slightly and winced when he felt the pain again. He smiled at her now and joked. “Nothing like a light coma to recharge the batteries.”

He looked around the small room and then back to her. “What happened after Shoupe got there? I don’t really remember much after that.”

“I bet. You had lost a lot of blood. I told Shoupe everything. I mean almost everything.” She added after JJ raised his eyebrow. “I kind of implied that Barry and Rafe had been trying to extort us for protection money and that was why you went to Barry’s. I told my parents the same thing. I’m not sure if Shoupe one hundred percent believed me but I don’t think he is going to question it that much.”

A weight had been lifted from JJ’s chest. The burden of carrying all that fear and violence by themselves had been starting to take a toll. He was glad her parents knew about what had happened and hoped that he could return the money to them and they wouldn’t blame him for Kie having stolen it. He thought of her parents and a new fear arose.

“Did they call my Dad?” He asked, his voice full of worry.

She squeezed his hand and smiled softly. “Shoupe told them not to. He said he would talk to you after and that he would go with you if you wanted to talk to your Dad.”

JJ turned away from her nodded, contemplating that information over in his mind. He didn’t want to see his Dad and he was thankful that Shoupe had made the right call. 

“He called Heyward though. He was here earlier, he brought you that.” She nodded her head at the table on the other side of the bed.

JJ looked over and smiled at what was once a warm breakfast sandwich and a can of JJ’s favorite soda. “I guess it would have been too much to ask for a beer?” He said as he turned back to Kie. “Pope?”

“I told his Dad not to tell him anything until he got back from his interview. I didn’t want to stress him out. He was under the impression that the meeting with Barry would be today, so I don’t think he knows anything about last night.”

JJ just nodded. He looked at her arm and her head and frowned. “Are you okay?”

She met his eyes and the soft smile faded from her features. “Honestly, no. But I think I will be.” 

“I’m sorry you had to be the one to shot him. When he hung up the phone and I was still so far away, I was sure I was going to get there and find you dead.” Kie leaned in closer and raised their hands to her lips and pressed a soft kiss to his grazed knuckles. “I promised myself I would kill him.”

She held their hands to her lips and closed her eyes. A tear fell onto her cheek and she opened her eyes to look at him. “I was so sure I was going to die on that dock. Then I heard your voice and I was so happy.” She paused, emotion filling her words. “But then he shot you and I thought I had lost you.”

“Hey, don’t cry. I am okay now.” He pulled their hands to him and she followed the motion by moving to lay in the space next to him. He wrapped his arm around her, feeling a sense of relief now that she was back in his arms. “I’d never leave you.”

She raised her head and held his gaze for a moment before gently pressing her lips to his. She pulled back but didn’t meet his eyes. “I love you.”

A few seconds passed before JJ replied. “I know.”

She looked at him and squinted, in suspicion. “Did you just Han Solo me?”

He chuckled softly. “Yeah but I love you too.” He looked at her again and raised an eyebrow. “You are saying you want to date me kind of love me? Right?”

“Yes, you idiot.” She smiled widely at him.

“What about the no-pogue-on-pogue-macking rule?” “He asked. “You know if I thought you were into me, I would have taken a shot, but you’ve turned me down before.”

She pushed herself up and held her weight on her good arm. “JJ, we made that rule when we were fourteen. And I turned you down that night because you and John B had gotten wasted on Big John’s whisky and then tried to kiss me.”

He frowned. “I don’t remember much of that night, except that you turned me down.”

“Well it was a good thing I did because less than 5 minutes after I did you threw up all over the hammock.”

JJ laughed and looked up at the ceiling, remembering more of that night. “Big John had to throw it out because it stank so much.” He winced as the pain flared in his shoulder.

“Do you want me to get a nurse?” Kiara said moving to get out of the bed. 

JJ reached out and grabbed her hand. “No, I think I will be fine. Just lay back down. No offense but you look like shit.”

She smirked. “Oh my JJ, you are such a romantic. How have I resisted you for so long?” She said sarcastically. She leaned down and kissed him again, both smiling as their lips met. She pulled back and brushed her hand through his hair. “My hero.”

He looked up at her adoringly, wondering how he had gotten so lucky. “You saved both our lives. You’re my hero.”

She blushed and he reached up this time to kiss her. When he pulled back, he tried to stifle a yawn.

“You should get some more rest.” She said.

“Light coma, remember I’m good.” He just wanted to keep kissing her, not wanting this moment to end.

She laughed and pulled back. “You got shot you still need to rest and heal.” She laid back down beside him and he settled on his pillow.

He looked down at the top of her head as it bobbed up and down with the rhythm of his breathing. “You’re gonna stay, right?” His voice sounding smaller than he had wanted it to.

She didn’t look up at him, her eyes already feeling heavy with oncoming sleep. “I’m not going anywhere.”

JJ smiled and closed his eyes, feeler safer and more content than he had in a long time. Sleep found them both quickly, wrapped securely in each other’s arms. That was how the nurse found them five minutes later when she came in to check on the patient. 

…

JJ opened his eyes to find himself still in a hospital bed with Kiara asleep, curled into his side. He looked over at the chair she had been slumped in earlier to find it occupied by Pope. The look on his face wasn’t a good one.

He noticed JJ was awake and spoke quietly, to not disturb the girl in his friend’s arms. “You didn’t call me. When I got back, I told Dad about the interview and then told him I was going to see you guys.”

JJ tried to look innocent. “How did the interview go?”

He huffed. “It went great. Then Dad told me that you were both in the hospital. That you were shot and that Rafe was dead.”

“We didn’t want anything to distract you from your interview. You worked so hard for it. You left your first one for John B and the gold. We didn’t want you to be worried.”

“You didn’t want me to worry?” His voice was louder now, and he saw Kie stir on the bed. He looked down at her and then back to JJ. “So, are you guys a thing now?”

“Pope, man, I don’t know. I think so.” JJ looked down at her still asleep on his side. “I hope so.”

JJ looked back up at Pope and saw the hurt in his eyes. “I’m sorry Pope. I really am.”

“Don’t JJ. It’s fine. It’s a little weird to see but I think I saw it coming. It’s not up to me who Kie likes.” He looked down at Kie again and then back up at JJ. “That being said, if you hurt her, I will break your legs.”

JJ chuckled. “If I hurt her, she would break my legs.”

“You’re damn right I would.” Kiara said opening her eyes and looking between the two boys.

Pope looked a little embarrassed. “How much did you hear?”

“Enough.” She replied and pulled herself up a little. “I’m sorry we didn’t call you and tell you sooner.”

“I’m just glad you two are okay.” Kiara pulled herself up off the bed and Pope stood to hug her gently. “I couldn’t bare it if I lost either of you.”

“We love you too buddy.” JJ said just as his stomach rumbled.

The nurse walked in at that moment to check JJ’s vitals and bandage. She told Kiara that her discharge papers were ready and that her parents were waiting to take her home.

Kiara looked over at JJ, feeling torn. He spoke up first. “Kie go home. Your parents have probably been freaking out. I will see you later, besides, I need a shower and I don’t think I’m ready for you to give me a sponge bath.”

She laughed and stretched her arm out. “Yeah, fine by me. I need to have a shower myself. And as much as I am definitely pulling off this look, I want to be wearing anything but this.”

“Oh, it’s definitely a look.” JJ said with a smirk. 

Pope turned to JJ. “I will go find you some decent food.”

“Oh my god, yes please. Something huge and really hot.” JJ’s stomach rumbled again, and he remembered he hadn’t eaten since lunch the day before. It’s not like he hadn’t gone without meals before, but he had burned through a lot of energy in the last 24 hours and his body needed fuel.

“You got it, JJ.” Pope said and he bumped fists with his best friend.

When Pope moved out of the way, Kie walked back over to JJ and planted a quick kiss to his head. “I will be back later.”

She turned and walked out the door. Pope gave a quick wave and then followed her out. JJ pulled himself up with the help of the nurse. She smiled at him and said. “You have a lot of people who care about you.”

JJ looked at the little table by his bed and saw the soda from Heyward, suspecting someone had thrown out the breakfast sandwich by now. He also noticed a business card from the now Sheriff Shoupe. He looked towards the door where Kie and Pope had just left and smiled to himself. “I guess I do.”

…

Pope had gone to the Chateau and brought JJ some clothes to the hospital. He didn’t want to bring it up with JJ, but the place had been a mess, broken glass and blood on the floor and police tape all over the dock.

They had left the hospital and against Pope’s protests headed for The Chateau. JJ had been living there and despite offers from his friend, it was only place that felt like home. Pope had offered to clean up for him, but JJ insisted he just needed some time alone to think.

The bullet wound left his shoulder feeling stiff, but JJ didn’t mind the dull ache. He found a small dustpan and brush under the kitchen sink and used it to sweep up all the broken glass. He was outside putting the remnants of the broken bottle in the trashcan when the Sheriff pulled into the clearing by the house. JJ watched as Shoupe got out of his vehicle with a handful of papers.

“You left the hospital without checking out.” He man posed it as a statement rather than a question.

“Yeah, well they would need a parent to sign me out and that wasn’t going to happen.” JJ said putting the empty dustpan on top of the bin. “What can I help you with Sheriff?”

“I fixed it up it with the hospital they gave me this to give you.” He handed JJ a script for pain meds. Shoupe looked down at his feet before continuing. “I know you’re living here JJ, because you can’t go home.”

JJ frowned, getting the cops involved with his Dad was a sure way to end up dead. “I spoke to Uncle T, he said I could crash here until his projects are finished.”

“I know I spoke with him too.” JJ looked surprised. “Look JJ, I know you have had it rough and I thought I would leave you with some options.”

Shoupe handed the pile of papers to JJ, who looked at them cautiously. “What are these?”

“They’re papers to file for emancipation.” JJ’s head snapped up to look at the man standing in front of him. It hadn’t been what he was expecting. Almost sensing what JJ was thinking the officer continued. “We tried the foster care route for John B, and it didn’t work out. I didn’t think it would work for you either.”

“Thanks.” JJ replied sincerely. 

“You kids need to be careful.” JJ looked confused again, but Shoupe continued. “Ward wasn’t happy, as you can imagine, when I told him his son was dead. He has lost 2 children in less than 3 weeks. He is a dangerous man, JJ.”

Anger started to rise in JJ. “Then do something about it.”

Shoupe rubbed the back of his neck in frustration. “It’s harder than it looks. He has a lot of powerful enemies and the list of people who think they have enough to take him down is getting shorter by the day.”

JJ was frustrated but dropped the glare from his face when he saw Kiara’s car coming towards them. The Sheriff turned to leave.

“Thanks again.” JJ called and lifted the papers in his hand. “For this.”

Shoupe smiled and nodded his head. “No problem kid.”

Kiara got out and walked towards where JJ was still standing. Her wrist had a cast on it but was no longer in the sling. She looked back at the police cruiser as it left the clearing and disappeared. “What did Shoupe want?”

JJ didn’t know why but he didn’t want to tell Kie about the potential emancipation. He didn’t want to risk the freedom it afforded by celebrating prematurely. “Nothing just finalizing details and stuff.”

“You know when you texted and said you were leaving the hospital and coming back here, I thought you had lost your mind.” Kiara said looking out sadly towards the dock.

“I didn’t really have anywhere else to go. It’s home.” She gave him a sad simile and walked over to kiss him. The kiss was sweet but deep and it brought a genuine smile to JJ’s face. “You know I could get used to this?”

He leaned down and kissed her again. She pulled away and slid her backpack off her shoulder. “I bought lunch.” She said as she pulled out a takeaway bag from the Wreck.

They smiled at each other before entering the beach shack. Kiara looked around the room as they entered and was glad it had been somewhat cleaned since she had last seen it. They sat down at the small dining table and started pulling the food from the bag. JJ looked over a Kie. “Are you okay? To be here I mean?”

She looked at the room again and although her vision flashed with Rafe’s face coming towards her she also saw the good things. The dent in the wall that John B had made while diving for a football pass and his shoulder had hit the wall. She looked at the door jamb near the kitchen that had John B’s height measurements up until age 10 when JJ’s name had also joined the scribbles on the wood. She looked at the sofa bed that she had crashed on multiple times after a kegger. She also remembered sleeping next to JJ on that sofa after that night at The Wreck and she wondered how she could sleep another night without him right beside her. 

She then turned to JJ who had been watching her closely as she reminisced. She thought about his crooked smile that filled her with so much happiness and the constant warmth of his skin. She smiled and leaned forward to place a soft kiss to his lips. She pulled back and replied. “I’m good.”

And for once she meant it. She thought of the many bruises and broken bones they had between them. They had been through so much but had made it through to the other side. A warm smile spread across her lips as she watched the boy she loved, open one of the food containers and sniff it dramatically. She thinks at least for now, they were going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I might have rushed the "I love you"s but they are impulsive teenagers who almost just died so I am gonna let them be. Also I love Shoupe, if you couldn't tell and I think he will be an important ally in season 2.
> 
> I know hospital bed sharing is so cliche but I love it anyway. I am sorry if this is not the ending you wanted.
> 
> I have decided to make this a Part One of a series. I really wanted to work more with the JJ and Kie that I have created. A little sneak peek for Part Two: A postcard signed from Vlad and Val comes to the Chateau and the G game is back on. I will probably have JJ and Kie heading to the Bahamas to help John B and Sarah. It will most likely be written from JJ and Kie's perspectives because I am not really sure how to find the others' voices in my head. They still have plenty of enemy's like Ward and Luke Maybank will probably make an appearance.
> 
> Don't expect that project anytime soon though. I am going to take a bit of time before I start that. 
> 
> Again thank you for all the amazing support during this project. I love you all!! See you in the future!!
> 
> MissyXoxo


End file.
